


The Magic of Love: Dianakko Week

by expressivepokerface



Category: Little Witch Academia
Genre: Angst? Never heard of her, Cuddling & Snuggling, Diakko Week, Diakko Week 2019, Dianakko Week, Dianakko Week 2019, Enough fluff to stuff a teddy bear, F/F, Fluff, Love Confessions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-25
Updated: 2019-08-31
Packaged: 2020-09-26 07:30:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 39,583
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20385991
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/expressivepokerface/pseuds/expressivepokerface
Summary: For all your Diakko/Dianakko fluff needs! Stand-alone one-shot collection for Dianakko Week 2019.Day 1: Soulmates/Star-crossed Lovers - A routine punishment for Akko’s latest incident goes in a completely unexpected direction, changing her and Diana’s relationship forever.Day 2: Rivals/Competition - In which Diana plays dirty to varying levels of success in order to claim victory over her girlfriend in their special rivalry.Day 3: How/When They Fell In Love - Diana is sick, and Akko is sweet.Day 4: Moving In/Living Together - In which Diana is concerned for her girlfriend’s horrendous attention span.Day 5: Physical Affection - An incident during Akko and Diana’s early morning study-time means that they have no choice but to stick closely together all throughout the day.Day 6: Adulthood - Akko and Diana, now married, get a chance to reminisce over their younger lives and reflect on how things have changed.Day 7: Free Day - Diana is way too good at turning Akko’s compliments against her, but Akko is determined to finally claim victory and make her wife the blushing mess instead.





	1. Day 1 - Soulmates/Star-Crossed Lovers

“Ugh.” Akko groaned with feeling, straining her arms to reach up to one of the top shelves to dust and polish its surface while avoiding the various magical knick-knacks that lay on it. The chair she was standing on to reach the shelves creaked quietly under her with the movement. “Stupid Professor Finnelan, always giving _me_ the worst punishments,” she grumbled to herself, swishing her feather duster back and forth over an item until it looked mostly clean, “and stupid cleaning duty always taking hours…”

“If you don’t want to spend hours cleaning,” a refined voice rang out, tone friendly and lightly teasing, “then perhaps you shouldn’t cause trouble in the first place, Akko.”

“But Dianaaaa,” Akko whined, puppy-dog eyes activated as she turned to face her friend and secret crush, doing her best to ignore the little flip-flop of her heart when Diana stupidly-beautiful Cavendish came into view, “I didn’t mean to! Honestly! I just, y’know…tripped.” She admitted quietly, cheeks dusted with red and eyes flickering to the left and right as she recalled the ‘incident’.

Then, more animatedly, she continued. “I didn’t _mean_ to trip and launch my food tray at Finnelan! She’s the one that didn’t even bother to dodge it! Then they even dragged you into it to ‘watch me’ or whatever! And _then_,” she was nearly out of breath at this point in her rant, but her passionate dislike for Finnelan’s punishments knew no limits so she kept going, “it’s _magical item_ cleaning duty so I’m tortured by cool toys I can’t even _play_ with but instead have to _clean!_” Akko threw her hands up in utter disbelief, willing an amused-looking Diana to understand the sheer injustice of it all.

In so doing, however, her balance faltered and she was sent careening off the chair with a shriek. Akko barely registered the panicked shout of her name and the rapid footfalls that followed past the wind rushing by her ears, eyes clamping shut in preparation for a painful fall.

Instead of her back slamming into hard wooden flooring like she’d braced for, however, she fell into something softer. A pair of softer somethings. Carefully opening her eyes, she found concerned sapphire looking down into her own ruby. Glancing down, Akko realised she was currently lying in Diana’s arms. Diana was holding her in a princess hold. _Oh my god._ In an instant, her cheeks exploded with red heat and a strangled squeak escaped from her throat.

“Akko, are you alright?!” Her saviour asked worriedly, eyes quickly checking her over quickly for any sort of injury.

“Y-Yeah, I’m fine! All good! Hunky dory!” Akko squeaked frantically. As incredible as it felt to be in the other girl’s arms, she feared she might _actually_ explode if this went on much longer. She would have all the time in the world to reminisce about this moment and how close Diana’s soft-looking lips were _later_ \- for now, she needed to get down before her emotions took the reigns and made her do something she might regret. “You can, uh, l-let me down now!” She forced out, voice nearing frequencies only dogs could even hear.

Only then did Diana seem to actually _see_ what situation they were in. Those ocean blue eyes of hers widened comically and a dusting of red rapidly spread across her face. “A-Ah, of course! I-I should have realised sooner!” Quickly, she put Akko down to a standing position and took a hasty step back. They both stood there awkwardly for a few seconds, looking at just about anything except each other.

Before the silence could grow uncomfortable, Akko broke it. “W-Well, I should get back to cleaning I think! These shelves aren’t gonna wash themselves after all!”

Cringing internally at her lame finish and the way her voice had cracked with nearly each syllable, she turned to grab the now-spilt bucket of water and towel from the floor. Before she could get back to work, though, Diana’s hand on her shoulder stopped her. Akko’s face grew even redder at the contact, but luckily her last few functioning and non-screaming brain cells were just enough to swivel her head around instead of just leaving her a blushing mess of a statue. The sight of a red-faced Diana with a slightly bashful yet gentle smile, however, was enough to send those few survivors into screaming fits too.

“Let me help, Akko. I know you didn’t mean to cause any trouble, as you said, so why don’t we split the workload between us?” Diana offered kindly, pulling her hand off of Akko’s shoulder and thus finally silencing enough of the brunette’s brain cells that she could properly understand what had been said. “The faster we get done the faster we can leave after all,” she started as her smile shifted into something more playful, “and we should certainly be aiming to finish quickly before you _actually_ end up falling and hurting yourself.” Normally Akko might have protested the implications of that statement, but realised that if she fell again then both her body _and_ heart would be in danger at this rate. Yeah, no, that was a good idea.

“Eh?! Really?!” Akko asked excitedly, the flame in her cheeks being chased away by a growing grin. Diana nodded, immediately thereafter being knocked over by the force with which Akko launched to hug her. Eyes going wide, she managed to just barely keep them both from toppling onto the floor as her arms instinctively curled around Akko for stability. Said girl barely even noticed as she squeezed her friend tightly, head nestled between Diana’s shoulder and neck. “You’re the best, Diana! Between us, these things are gonna be clean and we’ll earn our freedom in no time!” Akko exclaimed with joy, pulling back before turning to jump back onto the chair she’d been using (sending it wobbling dangerously in the process, but luckily she didn’t fall this time) to get back to work with a much more chipper mood.

A few seconds later, she heard Diana mumble something under her breath before walking over to grab a bucket, towel and feather duster for herself. A quick glance showed that Diana’s face was dyed an even deeper red after that hug. Akko silently hoped the cannonball hug hadn’t made her mad. Angry Diana was _scary_.

* * *

Finally, after nearly half an hour, they’d reached the last few shelves of items. It had been way, way better with Diana there to chat to and joke with. Even if Akko was the one making most of the jokes, it was always fun to just talk with Diana. Not to mention that Akko making the jokes meant that she got to hear more of that melodic laugh, so it was really just a win-win for everyone.

Finishing up with her current item, a strange-looking wooden comb that she’d polished to perfect shininess, she moved onto the next in the row. A pair of round glasses with golden rims sat neatly folded on the shelf in front of her. Unlike most of the other items, this one already looked pretty clean - maybe they were newer or something? When she’d been given this punishment before she hadn’t ever seen them, so they must have been. Curiosity burned in her chest; she knew she wasn’t allowed to touch or use any of the items here, but at the same time it wasn’t like a professor was _there_, right? Diana probably wouldn’t approve, but she was not-so-secretly a big softy so she’d probably let Akko off the hook if she caught her.

Glancing surreptitiously over to Diana to confirm she wasn’t looking, Akko smirked mischievously and reached to slip them onto her face. Her smirk then dropped as she blinked repeatedly behind the lenses in confusion at her new sight. In the lenses she could see a pair of soft-looking hands that weren’t hers dusting off a pretty orb on a wooden shelf. Wait a second, were these showing her someone else’s vision?! That’s so _cool_! Maybe they’re used by spies or something to gather information?

…Though, wait a second, Akko could have sworn she’d seen that orb not too long ago when she’d been taking her stealthy, affectionate glances at Diana. And the neatness of those sleeves…_oh no way_. With reckless haste she ripped the glasses off of her face to look over at Diana.

Soft-looking hands, check. Dusting off a pretty orb on a wooden shelf, check. Neatly done sleeves, check.

Putting them back on one more time just to be sure, she watched this time as ‘her’ hands stopped cleaning and the viewpoint shifted to the side to show Akko herself wearing the glasses. …Uh oh. When ‘her’ viewpoint narrowed into a glare, she couldn’t help but gulp in dread.

“_Atsuko Kagari,” _oh no she was mad enough that she was using Akko’s full name oh god, “put those glasses _down.”_ Diana’s stern voice rang throughout the entire room. As quickly as she could, Akko ripped the glasses off and gave the other girl her most dazzling smile (which might have been a tad bit crooked with well-placed fear).

“H-Hey Diana, look at these cool glasses I found! They-”

“Akko.” Diana interrupted, striding over to Akko and holding her hand out expectantly. Like a guilty child she pouted and handed the glasses over reluctantly. Without breaking her stern stare-down, Diana gently closed her fist around the glasses and folded her arms together. “While I can appreciate your attitude to seek out the fun in situations usually, these glasses could have been _dangerous _for all you knew. There is a reason we’re not allowed to mess around with the items here.”

“I mean, yeah, but they aren’t! All they did was show me what you were seeing!”

“Be that as it may, that doesn’t justify picking them up, let alone _wearing them_ since they _could_ have caused you harm…wait.” Diana’s ‘lecture mode’ dissipated as she seemed to come to some sort of realisation, opening her palm to stare blankly down at the glasses. Stiffly, she lifted her head up to then stare at Akko. Looked down once more at the glasses, before finally looking back to the brunette. Akko tilted her head and furrowed her brow in confusion.

“What’s wrong, Dian-woah!” In an instant Diana’s face blossomed into a fierce red that reached all the way to her ears, mouth opening and closing repeatedly like a drowning fish and eyes wide as saucers. “Are you okay?!”

“I-I’m fine, but…I-are you…” Diana hadn’t stuttered so badly in all the time Akko had known her - what the heck about those glasses was enough that she’d become like _this?!_ Before she could ask, however, Diana closed her eyes, lifted her free hand up to pinch the bridge of her nose between her index finger and thumb and took a deep, deep breath before letting it all out in one big sigh.

Akko watched it all with knitted brows and a concerned gaze, still completely lost in what the heck was going on anymore. When Diana next opened her eyes, her cheeks were still dusted with red but she’d stopped awkwardly gaping and seemed more composed. “Ahem. What I was trying to ask is if you _definitely_ saw through m-_my_ eyes when you looked through these glasses.”

Akko was still confused, but this seemed like it was important to Diana even if she didn’t know why. “I mean, I don’t know who else it could have been. I saw you cleaning that orb thingy and then saw myself when you turned to me, so…” She trailed off with a shrug.

Diana made a weird face like she’d just eaten a super sour lemon before closing her eyes once more. As Akko watched, her fluorescent flush crept further across her face. Even though she didn’t really get what was going on, she couldn’t help but note how cute a flustered, blushing Diana looked. Before she could get lost in the sight, though, the other girl suddenly opened her eyes and brought the glasses up to her own face and put them on.

The moment she did, that flush grew to such a deep, deep shade of red that Akko genuinely began to worry her friend might pass out. Even her lips were scrunched up in a weird, wobbly way, like they couldn’t decide between a smile or a grimace. Though, honestly, while one part of her mind was concerned, the other half had yet to fully get past the image of Diana Cavendish wearing glasses and looking quite frankly ridiculously pretty. Then, though, she realised something that pushed that aside.

“Hey, wait! You can’t just tell me off for wearing those and then put them on yourself!” Akko glared as she jabbed an accusatory finger into Diana’s sternum, seemingly breaking her out of whatever reverie she’d fallen into after putting on the glasses. With her hands shaking ever so slightly she took the glasses off and placed them back onto their shelf. When Diana next spoke, her voice was an octave higher than usual but otherwise mostly composed again.

“Y-Yes, well, _I_ am already familiar with what these are.” She defended, meeting Akko’s eyes with another stern look. “So I stand by that you shouldn’t have done what you did.” Even with the cute blush still present on her face Diana’s firmly disapproving gaze was piercing. Akko nodded guiltily and those blue eyes softened. “So long as you understand.” Diana looked down for a moment and sighed before looking back up with a small smile. “I apologize if I seemed harsh. I just don’t want to see you hurt, Akko.”

And now _Akko’s_ cheeks were the ones burning. That kind and sincere look in Diana’s eyes drove home the arrow that spiked straight through her chest. Oh, _why_ did her poor little heart have to be so _weak?!_ That tender gaze was _dangerous_ and Akko needed to say something before her heart finally gave in and imploded under the force of her sappy emotions.

“I, uh, n-no problem Diana!” Akko’s voice had wobbled embarrassingly as she’d said that, but she forged on as if nothing was wrong. “You’re just looking out for me like always, so uh…thanks.” She finished as she scratched the back of her head sheepishly. And then Diana’s smile _grew_ and _oh_ Akko was in trouble. If she didn’t derail this then she feared her rampant emotions would make her blurt out something she didn’t want to say.

“Hey, y-you said you know what those glasses are, right?” Akko asked as quickly as she could, the words slurring together in her haste. Diana’s face went suspiciously blank at the question, which was enough for her curiosity to take the reigns from her thumping heart. Akko’s head tilted to the side in question as she continued. “So what are they? Fancy glasses that show you what someone nearby is seeing or something? It seems pretty cool!”

Diana’s eyes flitted about from left to right without ever settling on Akko, her right hand coming to rest on her chin in a thinking pose. Her smile also seemed a little more crooked now and the crimson flush that had been fading was once again returning. All in all, it was enough to make Akko’s curiosity reach never-before-seen heights. Why was Diana acting so embarrassed about a fancy, magical pair of glasses? Was there something more to them after all? “Diana? You’ve got me really curious now! What are they?!”

Finally, the blond began speaking. “W-Well, they…they...” Diana visibly fought with herself as she tried to force out whatever she was struggling with. After a few moments of silence wherein Akko just stared confusedly at her struggling friend, Diana stopped trying and gave her a pretty obviously faked smile. “I think we should focus on finishing up your cleaning duty, Akko. If Professor Finnelan comes to check and finds us chatting like this then you could end up in even more trou-”

“Diana.” Akko cut in with as stern a tone as she could muster, hands moving to sit on her hips and her lips turning down in a frown. Diana went silent as her fake smile dipped into a flat line. “Why can’t you just tell me what it is? You said it wasn’t dangerous or anything, so what’s the problem?”

Diana sighed, looking conflicted again. “It’s…a little more complicated than that, Akko.”

Akko rolled her eyes as she stomped her foot petulantly. “_How_, though?” She was getting pretty sick of all this question dodging - seriously, those glasses couldn’t have done anything _too_ amazing, right? Why all this secrecy?! “Pleeeease! Just tell me or it’s gonna eat me alive for _hours._ Do you want that, Diana? Do you want me to suffer, huh? Or do you think I’m too stupid to understand it or something?” It was meant to be more of a joke than a real accusation, but judging from Diana’s suddenly fearful wide eyes, she might have taken that a bit more seriously than Akko had wanted.

“I-no, of course not!” Diana raised her voice to exclaim, left hand reaching out to clutch onto Akko’s right arm in reassurance. Both of them couldn’t help but blush a little at the contact but, praise be, this time Akko’s brain remained functioning enough to keep eye contact. “Not at all. You’re not stupid at all, Akko. Don’t think of yourself that way.” Diana’s sapphire eyes glimmered with sincerity, pleading with Akko to believe her. “I…it’s just…” Here she looked away for a moment with a slight grimace before heaving a sigh. “I suppose I may as well just explain at this point.”

Taking a deep breath, she gathered herself for a few moments before explaining. “Those glasses are…an obscure sort of knickknack I suppose. You wouldn’t typically find them in, say, the Last Wednesday Society since they have a…_unique_ purpose. That is, they are enchanted to, ah…” Blushing once more, she folded her arms together again and stared off to the side at the shelves, away from Akko.

For a few moments she remained silent, long enough that Akko started to get concerned. Before too long, though, Diana brought her eyes back up to meet Akko’s as she continued. “They claim to be enchanted such that those who look through their lenses might…” Her blush deepened. “’See through the eyes of their ‘soulmate’. That is, the person out there that is…’fated’ to be your ideal romantic partner through compatibility of the soul itself.”

Akko stared blankly.

Diana’s confidence faltered at her expression. “T-The credibility of it all is admittedly a bit uncertain, though the documented cases of people finding partners through those glasses were…very often incredibly successful. S-So, one could certainly argue a case for its validity.” She finished, voice wavering a little towards the end. Diana’s index finger began tapping on her arm and she couldn’t seem to look into the brunette’s eyes for more than a few seconds at a time. When Akko remained completely frozen and unresponsive, that finger began tapping faster and her lips drew down into a slight frown.

Akko stared blankly.

Diana was starting to look more and more concerned the longer Akko was catatonic. Her blush had faded somewhat and her eyebrows were now furrowed together. All of Akko’s brain cells were still too busy either fainting, screaming incoherently or generally just falling apart to do anything more than stare at the other girl.

“…Akko?” Diana called out gently, voice still a bit shaky. When no reply came and her usually energetic friend remained completely dead to the world, her lips dipped down at the sides glumly. “Are you perhaps…disappointed?” She asked in a small voice, so unlike the proud Diana Cavendish that Akko was used to. The wobble in her friend’s voice was enough to force her mind to finally begin rebooting, the rusty cogs of her mind beginning to move once more to wipe that sad look off of her crush’s face.

“N-No! No way I’m disappointed!” Akko blurted out loudly enough that Diana actually flinched back a little, flailing her arms in front of her in frantic protest. She most definitely _wasn’t_ disappointed - how could she be?! The girl she’d had feelings for for god knows how long now was apparently her _soulmate?!_ _What?! _“I mean, you’re _you!_ I should be the one asking if you’re okay with someone like _me!_” Akko still wasn’t anywhere near over the revelation Diana had just hit her with, blood coursing through her face like magma and heartbeat pounding in her ears because _oh my god soulmates exist and Diana Cavendish is her soulmate and what perfect timeline is this?!_ She felt like she was soaring on a fluffy cloud of excitement and disbelief.

Instead of Diana being comforted by her words like she’d hoped, her gaze instead sharpened to a steel edge and she frowned down at Akko gravely. “Atsuko Kagari.” Diana began with a tone that brokered no argument, embarrassment banished for the moment. “You are the one that awakened the Seven Words of Arcturus, a feat no other Witch - not even Shiny Chariot - had ever managed to accomplish in the past.” With every word she leaned in further to Akko, jabbing a finger into Akko’s sternum like she herself had done to Diana earlier as if to drive home the point straight through her chest. Akko’s mind was frying again at Diana’s impassioned speech that seemed solely focused on _praising her oh my god. _At this rate she was actually gonna explode from emotion.

“Never have I known a witch with more tenacity, belief and willpower than you, Akko. While you have caused your fair share of incidents, you never truly intend anybody any harm because you’re a truly kind girl. It’s for those reasons and more that I am _glad_ it’s you, Akko.” Finally she took a step back from the now-bewildered but incredibly flustered Akko, the steel in her eyes softening and becoming something more tender. “There is none other I’d rather be tied to, even if we found out in such an…unexpected manner.”

At this point, with how everything was coming together in the most amazing of ways, Akko half-expected to suddenly wake up in her bed and find this was all a perfect dream. Her chest felt warm and her mind was racing at the implications of what had been said. Diana was…_glad_ that Akko was her soulmate? Did that-could that mean…?! When Diana had revealed the truth about the glasses she’d been happy, sure, but figured that it wouldn’t really end up meaning anything; that Diana didn’t share her feelings and so they’d both just move on from it and ignore it. Akko’s heart was no longer just soaring - it felt like it had been strapped to a rocket and left the goddamn _atmosphere. _ Even her mind felt fuzzy and unfocused at the possibility of Diana returning her feelings.

Now finished with her emboldened speech, Diana seemed to be coming to similar realisations about what she’d just said. Wide-eyed and red-faced, she hastily tried to get some damage control in. “T-That is to say that-that I…” She took a deep breath in as she lifted a hand to rest gently over her heart, her eyes closing as well. When she opened them a moment later she seemed a little calmer and less flustered. The main change, however, was in her eyes - they glimmered with a spark of resolve that wasn’t there before. “I mean what I said.” Diana stated simply.

Akko stared, stunned, before her emotions surged up from her chest and forced their way past her lips. “I’m glad it’s you, too!” She exclaimed loudly and excitedly. It seemed to be Diana’s turn to stare stunned now. Akko twiddled her fingers together in front of her chest, eyes shifting to the floor. “I, uh, wouldn’t want to be anybody else’s soulmate either.”

It was now or never. If she was wrong about Diana maybe liking her back, then she just had to trust in the strength of their friendship that it wouldn’t break. If she was _right_, though, if Diana had been saying what she thought…then it was worth the risk. She couldn’t just keep hiding these feelings and besides, if there was any time to confess to your crush it _had_ to be when you found out you two were _soulmates, _even if it was in a dingy storage room. There wouldn’t ever be a better moment.

“I’m glad you’re my soulmate too b-because you’re _unfairly_ smart and equally unfairly pretty and kind and…and…” And she was _stalling, get to it Kagari!_ “And I like you_._” Akko managed to force out, eyes still locked on the ground to avoid seeing Diana’s expression. She could still hear her quiet gasp though, which sent Akko’s nerves into overdrive and her fingers stopped twiddling to instead clutch tightly at the sides of her skirt. “A _lot,”_ she tacked on hastily, “so…so of course I’d be happy to find out we’re soulmates!" With a force of extreme will she heaved her gaze upwards to gauge Diana’s reaction.

Ocean-blue eyes were blown wide open in shock and her face was a sweet cherry-red as she gaped at Akko. She didn’t look disappointed or sad or anything, which helped Akko to push out the last few words lodged in her throat. “Though, uh, I still don’t really know what that means for us. B-but yeah. I like you, Diana.” Finally done, she allowed her will to slip for a moment to stare off to the side and scan the shelves as she waited in anticipation for what Diana might say.

Silence reigned in the room for a short time after Akko’s heartfelt confession. Each second that passed without her friend saying anything made Akko’s nerves surge worse and worse in her stomach. When it began to get unbearable, she risked a glance over and found herself promptly floored. Diana didn’t look like she was in shock anymore; instead, tears had gathered in the corners of the blond’s eyes and a wobbly smile was set in her face as she gazed directly into Akko’s eyes.

“Eh?! Diana, are you okay?! You’re crying!” Akko felt silly pointing out what Diana must have already been aware of, but in her defence her mind was still frazzled from the effort of getting the confession out.

“I am fine, Akko.” Diana replied after a beat of silence, voice sounding alarmingly choked up. Her hands lifted to dab delicately at the corners of her eyes before continuing. “I am…_more_ than fine.” She chuckled wetly and her smile grew even more radiant, eyes crinkling with the size of it. “I’m just happy_._ After all, I’ve felt the same way about you for quite some time.”

And say goodbye to Akko’s poor heart because screw soaring through the sky, screw shooting out the atmosphere, at this point it had reached another bloody _dimension_ with how high it had gone. Even the rays of sun peeking through the windows seemed brighter in that moment, catching Diana’s hair in a way that sent her mind into an even worse tizzy. Akko could feel her lips wobbling uncontrollably as tears of her own welled up in her eyes. An instant later she’d launched herself straight into Diana’s arms with a warbling cry of ‘Diana!’, nearly knocking the both of them over again.

She heard Diana let out an ‘oof’ at the impact before giggling breathlessly, arms wrapping around Akko as the brunette buried her face in her friend-crush-soulmate-maybe-even-girlfriend-now?!’s neck. Her _everything_ felt like it was going to burst at the seams; her heart, her mind, her entire body felt like it was on the verge of detonating into a giant explosion of confetti and sunshine. They basked in the glow of their mutual confessions in each other’s arms for a good few minutes of comfortable silence broken by occasional giggles of joy, both of them still riding the high of it all.

Akko was the first to speak into the silence, pulling her head back enough to meet Diana’s sapphires. “So, _soulmate._” She began with excitement. Diana’s blush deepened a little at being called such, but her content smile only grew. Even now it didn’t sound real to think that she could be ‘fated’ for someone like Diana Cavendish, but oh boy was reality sweet. “You like me back, huh?”

“I do believe I made that clear a few minutes ago already.”

“I mean yeah, but I wanna hear you say it again.”

Diana shook her head and let out an exaggerated sigh, but couldn’t hide the uptick of her lips. Events had built up enough good-will that she was willing to indulge some of Akko’s adorable antics. “Alright then.” She released Akko from her embrace before leaning in closely; close enough that her breath was tickling against Akko’s face. “I, Diana Cavendish, like Atsuko Kagari.”

The combination of a playful Diana, her closeness and the sincerity in her words was more than Akko had been prepared for - she’d wanted to hear a more outright confession, true, but this was just _too much_. The heat in her cheeks was giving away her own weakness, judging from Diana’s satisfied-looking smirk.

“Is that good enough?” Diana asked, voice knowingly smug.

“Y-Yeah, that’s great!” Akko squeaked. It only served to make Diana’s smirk grow. “H-Hey, uh, so,” She began, half to change the subject to stop Diana’s smugness from getting worse and partly because she realized there was a pretty important question that had gone unanswered, “what does this all…mean? Being soulmates and liking each other and all that.”

Diana’s smirk faded, a more serious expression now set on her face as she considered that. “Well…traditionally, I suppose that a mutual confession, let alone being soulmates, would make us…” She trailed off, flush returning with a vengeance. “Girlfriends. As for the soulmate aspect…I don’t truly know.” She smiled tenderly. “But what I do know is that I’d like to figure it all out at your side.”

“W-Well I definitely wouldn’t mind either of those things.” Akko said, trying her best to stop herself from squealing in joy so as to not interrupt the moment. Her fingers reached for Diana’s, their hands entwining together between them. It was enough to bring a smile to both of their faces - Akko’s bashful and earnest, Diana’s gentle and content. “Would you?” Akko asked, though she felt like she already knew the answer from Diana’s smile. Unconsciously, she found herself leaning forward.

“I’m certainly not opposed to that idea.” Diana replied warmly. She, too, was leaning in closer. By this point their lips were mere centimetres apart.

With all her focus on those ruby red lips so close to her own it was hard for Akko to put her thoughts together long enough to string a proper sentence together. She did her best, though, because there was one more important question that needed to be asked. “T-Then, since we’re girlfriends…would you want to maybe try out one of those girlfriend things? Like…k-kissing?”

Diana’s eyes were also trained directly on Akko’s own lips as she replied. “I’m…certainly not opposed to the idea.” She echoed her reply from moments ago, eyes fluttering shut as she closed in further.

And finally, _finally_, after months of pining and secret glances and so many little things, their lips met. It wasn’t the fireworks she’d been told by so many stories to expect, even if her heart did feel like it might explode out of her chest at any moment. It wasn’t an electric tingle that spread down her spine down to the very tips of her toes. It wasn’t either of those, no - instead, it felt like coming home. It felt like returning home after a long, tiring day to finally relax; that contentment, that safety and relief that told you ‘everything is as it should be’.

In other words, it was pretty damn good.

When they finally pulled apart, Akko couldn’t contain the giddy giggle that escaped past her lips. “Just…_wow_.” Was about all she could say, breathless with both awe and general lack of air. Her face burned with a steady warmth, but it was a welcome one. Akko’s cheeks were beginning to ache with the force of her grin as well.

“Wow indeed.” Diana said, also sounding a little out of breath. She herself seemed to be in a similar sort of haze, red-faced and smiling gently down at Akko. They stayed that way for a few moments, both catching their breaths and staring at the other with wonder.

“I think I could get used to that.” Akko chuckled out at last. “In fact…” Her smile tipped up at one corner and she waggled her eyebrows at Diana. “How about round 2?”

Diana giggled cutely. “You’re already insatiable. Need I remind you that we’re meant to be _cleaning,_ Akko?”

“We’re basically done with all that!” Akko argued, tugging lightly on Diana’s collar to pull her back in. “And besides, kissing you is way more important than cleaning some old relics and stuff!”

Her soulmate (_soulmate!_) and girlfriend (_girlfriend!_)’s flush deepened, and Akko knew she was getting to her. “W-Well, I suppose we _are_ nearly done…it couldn’t hurt.”

With a little squee of delight, Akko leaned forward and puckered her lips. Diana followed suit. Once more, bliss overtook all of Akko’s senses.

On a nearby shelf, the gold-rimmed pair of glasses that had started all of this sat neatly folded. In a few minutes it would receive the greatest, most thorough cleaning and dusting of its life as a reward for what it had done today. For now, though, it sat forgotten amid the blooming romantic atmosphere.


	2. Day 2 - Rivals/Competition

Ever since Diana and Akko had gotten together, Akko’s insistence on seeing the two of them as rivals in magic had dimmed down. While she was still competitive on occasion, especially for broom riding which she’d been working hard to improve at ever since her first flight, Akko seemed to reserve most of her competitive energy for a newer sort of rivalry that had sprung about as a result of their relationship.

That is, ‘titles’.

Early on, Akko had declared a new competition based on titles within their relationship - from ‘best kisser’ all the way to ‘best at not falling apart at any compliment or praise from the other’, there were a lot that she’d come up with. The only rule of obtaining a title was that they simply had to prove their superior skill in the title’s area and have the other admit as such.

When Akko had originally blurted the idea out in the middle of lunch for the entire cafeteria to hear, everyone had expected Diana to simply give her well-practised fondly exasperated sigh before gently turning the idea down.

Instead, most everybody was shocked when Diana took it _seriously_. In fact, she had welcomed it with open arms and surprising enthusiasm, much to their friends’ various reactions: disbelief over how deeply Akko had corrupted her (Hannah, Barbara, Constanze and Jasminka), cackling amusement (Sucy and Amanda, who just _knew _this was going to be _gold_) and gushing (that was Lotte, ever the romantic).

Even Akko herself had seemed flummoxed at having the tables turned so swiftly on her expectations; she’d never thought that Diana would actually get into it, even if she was serious about it herself.

And get into it Diana most certainly did. From the very beginning, Diana effortlessly laid claim to countless titles, even outperforming and stealing Akko’s own that she’d claimed. Although nobody knew the truth of it, this unexpected enthusiasm came about for as a result of one simple reason; to hold those titles meant that she was the ‘best’ at giving her partner joy in their respective areas.

So to Diana, who wanted to do everything she could to make her beloved Akko happy, this was something worth treating seriously. And a serious Cavendish was a force of nature to be _feared_.

Akko, bless her soul, tried her best. She even put up a good fight for a few of her titles, but alas. Diana swooped in and stole every single one, be it ‘best lap pillow’ or ‘best date planner’ or even ‘best at holding hands while hopping‘ (Akko had eventually started to make up more ridiculous and obscure ones in an attempt to give herself more titles - it only made things worse), she took them all.

It wasn’t without cost, though, with the pictures their friends had secretly taken of the two of them holding hands while awkwardly hopping having been used many a time to tease Diana. The things she did for love... But even so, she had persevered and won her titles.

All except one, that is.

Try as she might, Diana found herself unable to lay claim to one of the titles Akko had held onto from the very beginning. It was a source of endless smug satisfaction for Akko, who would gloat about it whenever she could to Diana even though the heiress was still the undeniable champion of their little competition. It shouldn’t have been effective at all.

But Akko knew, oh she _knew_, that Diana wouldn’t consider herself the true victor until she’d achieved a full 100% and used that against her. Diana Cavendish didn’t do things by halves or quarters or any fraction except the entire whole, which meant she _needed_ to steal that final title of Akko’s for true success.

The title in question being ‘Best Cuddler’.

Akko had always been an exceptional cuddle-mate, and she’d only honed her talents further in an effort to protect her pride and joy when she’d seen Diana laying waste to all of her previous titles. It wouldn’t be easy to take it from her, not in the slightest. But Diana was determined.

She knew she couldn’t win through normal means, as Akko was simply too naturally good at cuddling to defeat. As well, the chances of her actually admitting that her final title belonged to Diana were incredibly slim with how protective she was over it. So, Diana came up with a plan. If conventional strategies and plans had no chance of working, then she simply needed to play a little more _dirty_.

Akko would never know what hit her.

* * *

It was a lazy sort of day, the orange-hued sunbeams of the evening beckoning all to simply kick back and relax after a long day of lessons. So, naturally, the teams of Red, Green and Blue were doing just that. Akko had commandeered everybody’s evenings for a group picnic dinner so they could all hang out together, an idea everybody had been happy to join in with.

As the day wound down they’d all relaxed further, sitting about and chatting amongst themselves. To the majority of their group, this was simply a nice evening spent with friends. To Diana, this was an _opportunity_.

She and Akko lay side-by-side together on the picnic blanket, fingers intertwined as they looked up at the clouds trailing across the sky. Akko was chattering about the events of her day that Diana hadn’t been a part of, such as how she’d managed to get a good grade in Professor Pisces’ class, which Diana made sure to appropriately praise her for with kind words and a kiss on the cheek that left Akko giggling giddily, or about how Sucy’s newest concoction had nearly left her out of commission for the whole morning (Diana made a mental note to have a _talk_ with the mushroom-obsessed girl about that later).

It was, all in all, a pleasantly calm time as they both just basked in the feeling of being so close to the one they loved.

However, as lovely as it was, Diana had something she needed to do. For this plan, she had done some rudimentary research into ways one could optimise their ability to cuddle and come across the concept of different ‘positions’, one of which had been of _great_ interest to her. After having practised it on her pillows until perfection that morning, all that was left was to make use of it on an unsuspecting, unprepared Akko.

“-nd you wouldn’t _believe_ how long Finnelan’s rant lasted! You’d think she…” Akko trailed off as Diana turned over before gently pulling her close, slipping an arm under her to position the other girl’s back against her front. It was rare for Diana to be the one to initiate, but Akko didn’t seem suspicious that she might be planning anything yet.

This was the method she’d come across, the position with which she would take the crown from Akko’s head. _Spooning_.

As the ‘big spoon’, she could not only remove Akko’s ability to even fight back with her own cuddles, thus rendering her greatest strength nullified, but in addition she was able to provide an enhanced feeling of safety and comfort to her girlfriend (or so she’d read at least). Diana could barely hold back her budding smile of victory. It was an impeccable strategy, one that she was sure would see her through to glory with ease.

As she was pulled in close, Akko turned her head back to look at Diana with a smile. “Feeling cuddly, huh?” That smile morphed into a smug smirk. “I guess I can’t blame you, what with your girlfriend being the _best_ cuddler and all.”

Diana ignored the sound of Sucy’s exaggerated gagging and Lotte’s shushing from somewhere off to the side, focusing instead on her task. Akko hadn’t even realised what was going on yet. “Of course,” she agreed, keeping her voice level so as to not give anything away, “how could I not? You are ever so good at it after all.”

Akko let out a pleased giggle, shifting in her arms a little. Then she froze. Then she shifted again. When next she spoke, her voice was confused. “Hey, uh, I can’t hug you back like this.” Diana merely hummed in response as a smirk slowly spread across her face where Akko couldn’t see. “Diana?” Akko tried again.

Judging from the way her voice had gone into a higher pitch and the hint of red Diana could see on the edge of her cheeks, her plan was working. Diana’s smirk grew, and she dipped her head into the back of Akko’s neck to hide it. The brunette fidgeted confusedly in her arms for a few moments more before finally gasping with realisation. “W-Wait a second, you aren’t coming after my ‘best cuddler’ title are you?!”

It seemed the cat was out of the metaphorical bag at last. “Me? Doing something so heinous? Perish the thought.” Diana replied, not even bothering to hide the amusement in her voice now that she’d been found out. “Hypothetically, though, if I _were_ to do such a thing,” she started slyly, moving to speak directly into the nook of Akko’s neck that she knew was sensitive, “then I think it would be for the best that you simply concede victory to me. _If_ I were.”

Akko choked out a squeak at the feeling of Diana’s voice vibrating across that spot before finally managing to speak. “You _totally are_! I can’t even fight back like this, you _fiend!_” Akko shouted in horror. She began struggling in Diana’s arms to escape, but she was too considerate to use any real force, so her attempts were feeble at best and easily ignored.

“I won’t give up my pride as a cuddler to an _honourless_ _cheater! Never!_” Despite her desperate protests, she was still very much trapped in Diana’s soft embrace. Her wild wiggling wasn’t exactly making for an effective tactic.

At this point, Diana’s victory was assured. Now all that was left was to wait until Akko gave up and admitted that Diana had won, that she might claim the title properly and reign as the true champion of their rivalry until Akko inevitably came up with some other outlandish title. Honestly, had she known that playing dirty in such a simple manner would be so effective then she would have done this a long ti-

“Oi lovebirds, will you two just get a room already?!” Amanda interrupted tauntingly from somewhere, and as lost as she had been in her mission, it managed to catch Diana off-guard enough that her grip loosened for a split second; just long enough for Akko to wiggle her way out and escape.

While Akko was busy breathing a sigh of immense relief, Diana sat up to pierce Amanda with an icy glare that could strike fear into any heart. The American’s insufferably amused smirk only grew. Diana’s eye twitched.

Before she could do anything about the interloper that had ruined her perfect plan, however, a familiar pair of arms wrapped around her neck and yanked her back down with an undignified squeak. Akko shouted something about ‘repaying her saviour’ and ‘revenge cuddles!’, but they were lost to the wind as Diana fell.

The moment she landed on the soft blanket, she was fully trapped in a perfect reversal of their previous situation with Akko as the big spoon this time, and a despairing Diana doomed to be the immobile little spoon. Amanda began laughing raucously, still seemingly invincible against Diana’s ever-harshening glare.

Even if it had ended in failure, she had at least learnt something important from this attempt: to succeed on her next try, she would need to ensure they were alone and free of distractions, with Amanda O’Neill absolutely nowhere in sight.

…And that she would need to beware Akko’s cuddling prowess; the arms wrapped around her really were unfairly comfortable.

* * *

Though her first attempt had failed, Diana remained undaunted. It seemed her first plan of action would have to be scrapped, though - Akko had been substantially more cautious about Diana initiating contact after the first attempt and was quick to retreat when something was amiss, thus dashing any chance of her trying again to the wind. So, with plan A having gone bust, it was time for plan B to come into play.

It was time for Diana’s ultimate weapon, the one tactic she was certain would spell Akko’s downfall with more surety than any other.

Magic.

The perfect opportunity presented itself soon. The day was a Saturday, which was the typical date night for the couple. Since there was an important exam coming up on the Monday, however, they’d decided (read: Diana had insisted to a pouting Akko) on a more humble study date in Diana’s dorm for the sake of their grades.

It was a tried and proven formula for an evening date that they had enjoyed many times before, even if Akko complained a little; simply study for a few hours with good tea, good company, flirting and chaste kisses as rewards for good work. For this one, however, there would be a key difference.

After the ‘study’ section of the date, it would most likely end in cuddling sessions as per Akko’s usual request; she took any and all opportunities she could to show off her prowess, so Diana was certain she would do it again. This time, however, she would be playing into Diana’s hand in doing so. For today’s cuddling session, an unsuspecting Akko would find herself caught within the blond’s carefully laid web and be admitting defeat in record time.

For the initial part of Diana’s master plan, she had enchanted her bed with a spell before Akko arrived to alter its qualities and enhance its softness beyond the limits of any mundane material, thus optimising comfort levels to their absolute maximum. From using it herself in the past, she knew it was of incomparable superiority to a normal bed’s capabilities. A fitting stage for her triumph.

And for the true heart of her plan, she had researched into what magic might afford her the greatest advantage and come across ‘Inaltiare Tactus’, a spell with a great deal of variation in how it could be used to enhance the sensation of one’s touch - not the caster’s sense of touch, but rather what others felt when touched by the caster. It was _perfect_.

With a dash of belief and intent, it was a trivial task to guide it to enhance her own touch with a pleasant and relaxing effect, guaranteed to maximise Akko’s enjoyment while simultaneously securing her the title once and for all.

With everything prepared to such perfection, success was a foregone conclusion. Now, all that was left was to execute the plan and reap the results of her efforts.

They’d finished the studying section of the date a scant few minutes ago and Diana was just finishing putting away the various study materials she’d gathered for the session; plan or no, she refused to skimp on her or Akko’s education. Just as she placed the last book back into its rightful place on her shelf, a soft-sounding ‘whump’ rang out quietly from behind her.

“Woah!” Akko exclaimed in surprise. Diana turned from the shelf to watch her girlfriend pat at the soft bedding she was sat on in awe. “Your bed’s so _soft_ today!” Akko flopped back onto the white sheets with a pleased sigh, eyes fluttering shut in bliss and hair splayed out across the bed. “It feels like clouds.” She murmured with a grin.

“That would be because I used a spell to enhance its softness earlier.” Diana told her with a smile, doing her best to keep it from ticking up at one corner smugly, “I thought you might enjoy it; I’m glad to know I was correct.” It was fine to tell her about this part, since the true subterfuge lay in the power currently resting, quite literally, at her fingertips.

Akko cracked an eye open and looked up at her with an excited smile. “What spell?! This is _way_ too good to not try out myself!”

“Bouden Andwork - it’s a spell that can alter any material according to the caster’s wishes.” Diana replied with a smile as she moved to sit on the edge of the bed next to Akko’s hanging legs. It really was incredibly soft. “However,” she added on a bit more seriously, “I have to ask that you please practice it properly _with supervision_ before trying it. Not that I don’t think you would succeed,” she tacked on hastily, “I just don’t wish to see you inadvertently cause yourself harm while you sleep or some other unfortunate effect.”

“…Eh?” Now both of Akko’s eyes were open to gape at her. “It can do something like that?!”

“Yes.” Diana replied succinctly. “I recall you seeing what a related spell focused on taste, Bouden Dariard, could do to something as simple as an apple, no?”

“Oh, yeah. Poor Professor Badcock…” Akko glanced to the side and grimaced. “Yeah, poison bed covers wouldn’t be fun, although I guess Sucy might be into that. Well, in that case,” she put her sparkling smile back on as she looked back to Diana, “would you be up for helping your ever so lovely girlfriend out with it some time?”

Diana lay on her back to rest closely next to Akko before reaching out to flick the brunette’s forehead lightly in teasing reprimand. “Careful there love, your ego is showing.” She said playfully. “But of course I’m willing to help you, as always.”

Akko grinned toothily and pulled her in for a hug. “Thank youuu! And I am…” Her eyelids fluttered and she yawned. “_Am_ lovely I’ll have you know. It’s not an ego if it’s true.” Once more her eyelids fluttered closed for a few seconds before they opened slowly once more. This time, her yawn was larger. “Man, Diana, I dunno if it’s your mega comfy bed or what but I’m feelin’ really tired.”

Diana glanced to the clock - though their study dates usually went later into the evening than most of their usual dates, it was still only a little past 8 PM. Akko was usually much more energetic at this time, typically bouncing off the walls in her eagerness for hugs.

Had she made a mistake with the bed’s enchantment and added an extra effect? But…she couldn’t have. Countless times before she’d used this for the sake of her own comfort and had no issues with drowsiness, so how-

Diana gasped as her eyes widened in realisation. Inaltiare Tactus. She had added a pleasant relaxation effect to her touch, and she’d just flicked Akko’s forehead - the part of the body notoriously most susceptible to such effects. She must have overdone the spell in her anticipation as well, for it to work this quickly and powerfully.

This wasn’t good. This wasn’t good at _all_. Even disregarding the already-failing plan, she had essentially just _knocked her girlfriend unconscious_.

This was just an utter failure on multiple levels at this point, both in terms of their competition _and_ as a date. Diana silently cursed her own foolishness, mind racing desperately for spells that might fix the situation. She had to do something to fix this quickly, but _what?_

Before she could think of anything, a strange sound reached her ears. A rough, nasally sound. Focusing back on Akko, she found the other girl was snoring in her sleep, drool dribbling down onto the once-pristine covers. Diana stared dumbly at the sight. Her eye twitched ever so slightly. _Again_, her strategy had been effortlessly foiled. This time by her _own hands_.

This whole ordeal was just _shameful_ at this point.

While she could wake Akko up again, the manners she’d been raised to uphold stated that waking up your likely very comfortable and very tired (by your _own_ fault no less) girlfriend could very much be considered ‘rude’. Not to mention she wasn’t sure that if she touched Akko again she wouldn’t just make things even worse with the spell still in effect. At least with Akko asleep she was free to let out a distinctly unladylike groan of frustration.

Akko mumbled something in her sleep that sounded suspiciously like Diana’s name before she tugged the heiress in more closely and smiled. It was undeniably cute, enough to melt away Diana’s frustrations, and she couldn’t help but reciprocate the embrace as her heart squeezed with affection. Even in her sleep, it seemed Akko was still capable of holding her in such a way that Diana found herself feeling safe and relaxed.

Truly, this skill was a daunting mountain to overcome. Next time, though, she wouldn’t be foiled by her own foolishness.

Diana also made a mental note to buy a treat at the bakery when she next went into Blytonbury to make it up to Akko, even if the other girl might not understand what for.

* * *

Plan C ended in failure. Plan D after that, too. Even Plan E, which she had been utterly _certain_ would succeed, had been thwarted by a badly timed potion misfire by one Sucy Manbavaran. Whether it truly _was_ ‘bad timing’ was suspect, though, considering how unbearably smug the girl’s sneer had been.

This whole title-taking business was meant to have been a fun and simple affair like with all the previous titles she’d claimed, one that Diana could quickly be done and satisfied with until Akko inevitably whipped out her newest ridiculous idea for a title, but it had ended up becoming a true trial of willpower and time to such a degree that she was beginning to find herself feeling genuinely frustrated over it all more than she was having any fun.

Akko and their friends had fully caught onto her game now, too. Amanda found it to be utterly hilarious and would tease her about it whenever the opportunity arose while Sucy would make snide comments about each of her failures without fail.

The others, at least, kept their teasing to a minimum (though even Hannah and Barbara had started making their own little playful comments here and there). Akko was growing increasingly smug over the many times she’d managed to defend her title as well. Overall, things just weren’t going Diana’s way right now.

Honestly, it felt like some cruel deity was watching over her life to ensure that none of her plans would go uninterrupted. Although Diana supposed she couldn’t be _too_ irritated about it; each plan _had_ still ended in cuddling with Akko after all which was always pleasant, competition or no. Even if it also served as a reminder of Akko’s successes, it would be a rainy day in Hell when Diana didn’t enjoy her girlfriend’s hugs.

It was clear, however, that her plan to play dirty wasn’t working. Diana had seen enough failure at this point that she had been ready to throw in the towel and concede victory to Akko and her superior ‘snuggling skills’. But then, before she could go through with it, one final opportunity presented itself in the form of a never-before-seen formal challenge from said girlfriend.

“Diana.” Akko had begun gravely in the middle of lunch, as if the world itself hung in the balance. “I know what you’ve been trying to do, that you want my final title.” She’d continued, arms folded together and a serious look on her face. “And it ends today!” Her girlfriend had raised her voice for all to hear as she threw her arm out to point at Diana in dramatic challenge. “You and me. Red dorm. Cuddles. _Tonight_. One final duel for the title, winner takes all.” Akko declared. “And no dirty tricks this time!”

Their friends waited with bated breath (read: barely suppressed laughter) for Diana’s response. “I accept those terms, Akko. You are, as they say, _on_.” She had replied just as severely, fingers steepled underneath her chin dramatically. Next to her, Hannah shook her head woefully and whispered something under her breath about how ‘Akko really had corrupted her’. She gracefully ignored it.

And that was where Diana found herself now, laying on Akko’s bed alongside the brunette herself. Lotte and Sucy had left to go study in the library before Diana had arrived to give them some privacy, Lotte having been forced to drag the pink-haired girl out as she complained over her lost potion making time. The stage had been set for the final battle.

However, things hadn’t been going as expected.

Akko hadn’t mentioned the ‘duel’ at all, simply inviting Diana onto her bed and then immediately pulling her close. Initially, Diana had suspected some sort of foul play to be about and been on high alert (though she still reciprocated the cuddle, because there were few circumstances dire enough for her to not do that). But when Akko remained completely silent apart from the occasional pleased sigh or hum, Diana was both confused and worried that something was amiss.

“Akko?” She questioned gently.

“Mm?” Akko hummed in response.

Diana cleared her throat. “What, ah…what are we doing?”

Akko cracked one eye open to stare at Diana as if she’d grown a second head. “Cuddling, _duh._”

Diana’s eye twitched. “You know that’s not what I meant.” She pulled back a bit, forcibly ignoring the way Akko’s quiet whine tugged at her heartstrings and beckoned her back in. “While this is still most certainly pleasant,” she reassured, “I’m simply wondering where exactly this challenge of yours has gone.”

Akko giggled a little nervously and glanced suspiciously away to the roof of the dorm for a moment before looking back to Diana. “Well, uh, about that. That was a, um…a lie.” She admitted at last.

“A lie.” Diana echoed flatly, eyebrow raised and a clearly disapproving frown on her face. More than apparently being denied her final opportunity, she was more disappointed that Akko had deigned it necessary to lie to her.

“Hey, it’s for a good purpose!” Akko replied hastily, eyes wide and pleading for Diana to believe her.

“What, pray tell, is such a good purpose that you deemed it necessary to lie to me?” It was merely a little white lie, but Diana couldn’t help but be somewhat disheartened by it - did Akko not feel comfortable with telling her such a simple truth?

Akko must have picked up on the note of disappointment in her tone because those ruby-red eyes widened and she pulled Diana back in for a comforting cuddle. “I just…it’s just…we haven’t properly cuddled in like a _week_!” Akko confessed at last. “I love our little title rivalry a lot,” she opened, “and while you’ve been a dirty little sneak this week,” she poked Diana in the arm with an exaggerated pout on her face, “it’s still been super fun.”

Here, she stopped pouting and smiled that rare, sweet little sincere smile of hers that she reserved for sweet nothings between them that Diana found illogically adorable. “But we haven’t been able to properly just _cuddle_ for like a whole week too with your little tricks and everything. So I came up with this plan so we could!”

Diana’s heart ached at the implications. “Why didn’t you simply say so, then? Did you…think that I would _refuse_ you?” Diana’s eyebrows furrowed and she frowned in concern. “Was I causing you to feel so neglected by not properly cuddling with you that you felt you couldn’t even talk to me about it?” She asked quietly. How could she have been so blind to Akko’s troubles? She’d gotten so caught up in her own plans that she’d ended up completely missing any signs of her girlfriend’s worries. More than any failed plan, that stung the most.

Akko patted her arm comfortingly and cut in before she could lament any further. “It’s fine, Diana, that’s not what I meant! Getting to see you be sneaky for once was a lot of fun, so _I__’m_ fine! It’s just, I was worried _you_ were so focused on your sneaky plans that you weren’t enjoying cuddling anymore because of it. And you seemed like you were actually getting pretty frustrated by it recently.” Akko smiled at her, bashful and sweet. “So I wanted to give us both a chance to just cuddle for the sake of cuddling, y’know?”

Ah, so that was it. The grip on Diana’s heart loosened, and in its place rose a glowing warmth centred around one particular Japanese witch. “Perhaps I did get a_ little_ too absorbed into it in the end.” Diana acknowledged with a nod of her head.

After a moment’s more of contemplation, she sighed exaggeratedly. “By Jennifer, to have gone so far in my competitiveness that _you_ felt it necessary to call me out on it…” Diana shook her head as best she could with it still pressed against the mattress, though was unable to hide the uptick of her lips. “Perhaps Hannah is right after all - maybe you _are_ corrupting me.”

Akko glowered grumpily at her. “Okay wow, first of all; _rude_. Second of all, I love you,” Akko stated unabashedly and Diana couldn’t hide the blush that lit up her cheeks or the way her smile immediately went sappy, “so I can be the serious one in this relationship if I need to be! _Somebody_ had to do it,” Akko smirked and pulled one hand back to boop Diana gently on the nose, “what with the usual suspect being such a sly cheat.”

“How noble of you.” Diana chuckled. “I suppose I should take full advantage of your kindness, then.” And with that, she pulled Akko tighter against her and sank further into the embrace. In hindsight, she truly had been too absorbed in her strategising this past week - how could she have forgotten how lovely it was to simply cuddle up with her beloved? “And I love you too, you sweet, thoughtful girl.” Diana spoke softly. Akko tittered a pleased ‘ehehe’ and snuggled in even closer.

“Though honestly,” Akko began after they’d settled into each other, “I’m still surprised you were taking the whole title thing seriously enough to resort to those kind of sneaky methods.”

“You wanted me to take it seriously, no?”

“I mean, you never treated our _normal_ rivalry seriously, no matter how much I tried to make you, but then you just accepted it super easily with this one.” Akko spoke with an over-the-top huff, looking petulant.

“Well,” Diana opened, “it’s quite simple. To hold the title of ‘best’ in something related to our relationship means that I am…” Here she hesitated a little, realisation of what she was about to admit dusting her cheeks a rosy red. “Making you as happy as possible in those areas.” Diana’s eyes darted to the roof and away from Akko’s own before finishing. “It’s only natural that I’d want to make the girl I love, the girl that reminded me to dream again, as happy as I can.”

That pout was wiped off of Akko’s face in an instant, leaving a quivering pair of lips and increasingly teary wide eyes in its stead. A second later Diana was being crushed under the sheer force of Akko’s hug as the smaller witch buried her face in her chest, getting the front of her uniform wet with those happy tears by the feel of things.

“You’re _too_ _sweet!_” Akko gushed without pulling her head back at all, her voice reverberating against Diana’s collarbone. “Gah, how can anyone be so stupidly kind and pretty and sweet and amazing and gentle and just-just _perfect?! _It’s _unfair!__” _

Finally she pulled her head back just enough to give Diana a thousand-watt grin, though she didn’t let go at all. “I love you and wanna make you happy too, especially when you say things like that! Now I _really_ can’t let you take my cuddler title; _I_ need to have something I can make you happiest with, too! You deserve it too!” Akko declared passionately, eyes holding that same spark of determination and joy that Diana had first fallen in love with.

Diana couldn’t stop the force of her own smile even if she wanted to (and she most definitely didn’t), nor the overwhelmingly warm emotions welling up in her chest. A laugh escaped past her lips. “Well, how can I argue with that?” Diana reached to brush some stray brown hairs that had fallen in front of Akko’s face in the excitement. “If it’s for such a noble purpose, then I suppose I can let you keep that title of yours.”

“Good.” Akko nodded strongly. “With that all settled, you just sit back and let the ‘best cuddler’ work her magic to make this the best dang cuddling session you’ve ever had!” As Akko began hunting down the ‘comfiest possible position’ for them with dire determination, Diana couldn’t stop her delighted smile from growing even wider.

Perhaps losing this round in their little competition wasn’t so bad after all, she thought with a chuckle. Even though she’d lost in the conventional sense, in that moment, she still felt victorious within Akko’s arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like this chapter is a bit rockier than the first, but I'm still happy with it. I hope you all enjoy! Next one up is one of my favourites of the whole bunch, so I'm really looking forward to getting it out! And thank you all for the amazing reception for the first chapter, it means the world to me!


	3. Day 3 - How/When They Fell In Love

Akko was worried.

When she and her friends had arrived at class before Blue Team for the first time in their entire time at Luna Nova, Akko had been proud and just a little (lot) smug, looking forward to teasing them about it later. Although, her victory was soured a little by Sucy making a comment about Akko ‘teasing’ Diana that was _hardly appropriate_ and left her red all the way up to her ears. She sincerely regretted ever telling Sucy about her crush.

Then she’d looked at the clock, realised how close she had been to arriving late, and began to worry. Diana had never, ever been late to a lesson that Akko knew of and she doubted the blond would ever intentionally be tardy. In the minutes after that where Diana didn’t arrive, those worries only grew.

So, when Diana finally walked through that door flanked by Hannah and Barbara as usual, Akko had been relieved. But then she’d noticed the way Hannah and Barbara’s eyebrows were knitted together in concern, the frowns on their faces and the way they were hovering over every one of Diana’s movements as if she was made of glass. Of most concern, though, was Diana herself. With purple-tinged bags under her eyes and red-faced in a clearly feverish way, it was obvious that the other girl was feeling sick.

Akko was out of her seat immediately, ignoring Sucy’s and the other students’ annoyed protests as she barged through the row of seats next to her to intercept the Blue Team on their course for their usual seats.

“Diana!” She called out loudly as she jogged up to them. Diana winced, bringing a hand up to clutch the side of her head as if in pain. Hannah and Barbara both shot Akko an annoyed glare accompanied with a quiet but harsh ‘shh!’, stopping her in her tracks. “Ah, sorry,” Akko apologised much more quietly, smiling sheepishly and rubbing the back of her head, “but…are you okay Diana? You don’t look so good.”

“Don’t look _very_ good,” Diana corrected automatically as she lowered her hand back to her side, her voice somehow sounding even more tired than she looked which sent Akko’s concern skyrocketing further, “and I’m feeling fine, I assure yo-”

“Don’t believe her for a _second.__” _Hannah interrupted fiercely, earning herself a Cavendish Glare™ that the red-haired girl shrugged off with no issue whatsoever. “Look, Diana, even _Akko_ can see that you’re not feeling well enough for this, _please_ just go rest.” Hannah pleaded.

“What do you mean, _even Akko?!__”_ Akko asked angrily. She was promptly ignored.

Diana narrowed her eyes and opened her mouth to say something, but Barbara cut in before she could. “We’ll take notes for you, we’ve said it countless times already. Just go rest, _please_?” Barbara’s eyes were hopeful, entreating Diana to just _listen_.

But Diana Cavendish was nothing if not stubborn about her education and attendance record, so she just waved them off. “I am _fine_, girls. And Akko,” she met the brunette’s eyes and gave her a weary attempt at a reassuring smile that just made Akko _more_ worried, “I assure you I’m feeling okay, it’s merely a minor cold.” Diana somehow said with a completely straight face, as if her cheeks weren’t painfully red and there weren’t bags sitting uncomfortably under her eyes.

“Oh my god.” Hannah moaned next to her. Barbara shook her head with a sigh.

“Diana.” Akko opened with a frown. That tired smile fell off Diana’s face at Akko’s serious tone. “I really think you should go to the nurse’s office or even just back to your dorm to-”

The classroom door creaked open in that moment, revealing Professor Badcock carrying a large stack of books, no doubt for their lesson. “Get into your seats!” She commanded loudly. Diana winced again.

“I’m _fine_, Akko. Truly.” Diana reassured her one final time before going off to her seat. Akko hovered a moment as she worriedly watched the other girl go, only moving back to her own seat when the professor shouted for her to go and sit down.

The lesson itself wasn’t anything special, but Akko was hardly paying it any attention at all. Instead, she kept glancing over at Diana (and not in her usual ‘can barely keep my eyes off my crush’ way) as the lesson went through one ear and straight out the other. Though the heiress had _said_ she was fine, it was incredibly obvious in everything she did that she most definitely wasn’t at all. For the first time in her life, Akko could see that Diana was struggling to pay attention to the lesson, eyes and focus visibly drifting off every few minutes as even her quill stilled for minutes on end.

It wasn’t just Akko that had noticed, either. Hannah and Barbara were constantly murmuring things to Diana that Akko could guess were probably more pleads for their friend to go and rest judging by Diana’s increasingly irritated expression, and nearly everybody else in the class seemed to have picked up that something was wrong.

Next to her, Lotte was also sneaking glances every now and then though still simultaneously trying to pay attention, and while Sucy appeared as apathetic to the world as ever, Akko had seen her peek over a few times. Amanda and Jasminka kept side-eyeing the Blue Team as they whispered between themselves, and even Constanze couldn’t resist the occasional look over. They were all concerned.

Then, tragedy struck. Professor Badcock called on Diana half-way into the lesson to answer a question and Diana, for the first time in history, had to ask for the question to be repeated as she hadn’t heard. Even Badcock seemed floored, tone confused as she repeated it for her student. Diana answered it promptly after that with seemingly no issue, so Akko had thought that would be the end of it.

But then, even further tragedy struck. Their professor, looking shell-shocked herself, awkwardly told Diana that the answer was incorrect and provided the answer herself. From where Akko was sitting, she could see the genuinely stricken look on Diana’s face. Her own heart tugged painfully.

In that moment, she decided that enough was _enough_. Slamming her hands down onto the desk (and mentally apologising as Diana flinched at the sound), Akko launched herself from her chair and strutted with purpose straight to Diana’s desk. Diana’s eyes were wide as saucers as she watched her doom approach.

“Miss Kagari! What are you doing out of your seat?!” Professor Badcock screeched. Akko just kept moving, finally close enough now to grab Diana’s arm and haul her out of her seat amid the blond’s protests.

“Diana needs to go to the nurse’s office, professor!” Akko answered as if it were obvious. Which it _absolutely was_.

“I do _not_, now cease your manhandling at onc-” Diana attempted to argue, only to stumble from the vertigo as she was pulled to standing. Akko caught her before she could fall, trying to ignore the pitter-pattering of her heart at their close contact. Diana’s feverishly red cheeks bloomed an even deeper shade, making Akko’s worry grow yet again.

Professor Badcock watched the display, her face flat and unreadable. Her eyes moved to meet Diana’s, who was looking back at her in clear anticipation for her to tell Akko to stop. “Miss Kagari, I trust you know the way?” Badcock asked instead. Diana gaped at her in betrayal. When Akko nodded with a smile, the professor let out a sigh but waved towards the door all the same. “Do see her there safely then, would you? I’ll inform your other teachers of what happened.”

Akko gave a mock salute and began to walk Diana, who had mostly stopped resisting at this point after realising that everybody was against her, to the classroom door. Before they left, Lotte whisper-shouted from her seat that she would let Akko copy from her own notes later and that Sucy would help, too. The mushroom-obsessed girl grimaced and rolled her eyes but didn’t say no. Akko flashed them both a thumbs up and a thousand-watt grin - she really did have great friends.

As the door shut behind them on their way out, Diana made one final attempt at arguing. “Akko, again, I feel fin-”

“Nope!” Akko interjected with a bright smile. Diana’s eye twitched.

“I swear to yo-”

“Nope!” Akko interjected once more, beaming grin still firmly on her face.

Diana’s lips thinned into a flat line as she weakly glared at Akko. “Are you going to interrupt me each time I try to argue my side?”

“Yep!”

Diana pinched the bridge of her nose between her free hand’s fingers. “You’re insufferable.”

Akko brought them to a brief stop, turning back to Diana once more to flash her a smaller, more sincere and gentle smile. Those fevered cheeks grew yet another shade deeper. “You’re my friend, Diana. I don’t want you to push yourself when you’re sick and hurt yourself. So,” her gentle smile ticked up at one corner into a smirk, “just give in and let it happen!”

Diana sighed, but Akko could see the little smile she tried to hide. “…If I must. I suppose I’m in your care, then.” She gave in at last.

“Yay!” Akko exclaimed out loud, letting go of Diana briefly to lift her arms up in celebration. Diana grimaced and shot her an irritated look. “Ah, right, sorry.” Akko apologised, bringing her arms back down to grab one of Diana’s hands instead of her arm like she had before. Both of their blushes intensified, though only Akko’s was really noticeable. “Let’s get going, then!” The excitable brunette whisper-shouted, beginning to pull Diana forward to their destination once more.

* * *

The nurse had taken one look at Diana and immediately forced her to lay down in one of the room’s beds, performing a few spells alongside giving her some medicine as she reprimanded her the whole way about how she should have come immediately, how Diana could have made it much worse by forcing herself to continue as normal, etcetera etcetera. Even _Akko_ felt like she was in trouble from the vehemence in the nurse’s tone just by being nearby, but Diana accepted the scolding with grace. Well, as much grace as she could muster in her state.

Almost immediately after Diana settled, the nurse was called off to go deal with a ‘broom-flight incident’ in one of the other years’ classes. Akko had volunteered to watch over her friend without a second thought in her absence and while the nurse had seemed a little suspicious (she knew Akko and her reputation well at this point, with the amount of visits she’d made here), she let Akko stay in the end.

And that left them where they were now, Diana _finally_ getting some proper rest in bed and Akko sitting in a chair she’d pulled up next to the bed. Now there was a new issue that she was dealing with - still a stubborn, self-sacrificing Diana, but in a different way.

“Akko, you don’t have to watch over me. I think I can manage to do something as simple as resting without supervision, and you shouldn’t miss out on classes for me.”

“It’s _fine,_ Diana.” Akko said for what had to be the fiftieth time, rolling her eyes. “Lotte’s got me covered!”

“She might be allowing you to copy down her notes later, yes, but that’s no substitute for the experience of the lesson itself.” Diana insisted from where she lay, gaze stern as she looked up at Akko.

“Notes are more than enough, Diana, so I’m staying at _least_ until the nurse comes back. That’s _final_.” Akko firmly declared. She leaned forward in her chair to jab a finger at the heiress. “No more arguments from you! Your health is _way_ more important than some boring lessons!”

“They’re not boring, Akko, they’re _important_.” Diana huffed. Before Akko could think to say anything in response, she spoke up once more, quieter. “But…thank you. I will admit that I’m already feeling better after lying down, and the nurse’s magic is working wonders.”

“No problem, Diana.” Akko patted a duvet-covered leg. “I’ll stick around even if you wanna sleep, so go ahead and rest all you like.”

“Thank you, Akko, but I’m not feeling that tired right now. Instead, ah,” Diana glanced away from Akko as her redness intensified, “would you be willing to…talk? For a bit.” She looked back, staring up at Akko with a little glimmer of hope in those ocean-blue eyes.

“Eh?” Akko blinked in surprise. “I mean, sure! Yeah, of course.” Wow, feverish Diana was apparently also a more needy and honest Diana it seemed. She hadn’t acted like this in class, though - maybe now that it was quieter and there it was just the two of them it was having more of an effect or something like that? Either way, it was ridiculously cute. “Uh, anything in particular?”

“Well…anything, I suppose.”

“In that case, uh…” Akko brought a hand up to tap her fingers against her chin in thought. “Oh!” A figurative light-bulb burst into light above Akko’s head, the tapping finger shooting up into a ‘eureka!’ pose. “I’ve got it! Just yesterday evening, Sucy said…”

They chatted for a while, but it became increasingly clear to Akko that even though Diana herself had requested it she didn’t seem to be listening much, only giving simple hums and one-word questions or answers. On its own, that wouldn’t be an issue - Diana could just be getting tired after all.

But that wasn’t all.

Her eyes were downcast, and she wasn’t smiling as much as she had been at the beginning of Akko’s stories, even beginning to frown a little. It was getting pretty obvious that something more than the fever was distressing Diana. Which just wouldn’t do - it wouldn’t do at _all_.

So Akko, as was in her nature, set about to flip that frown upside-down. “Diana?” She opened during a lull with the current story.

Diana, whose attention had been slipping again, was caught off-guard. She jumped slightly before turning back to Akko from where she’d been staring blankly down at the bedcovers. “Oh, yes Akko?”

That reaction just made Akko even more concerned. “Are you feeling alright?”

Diana seemed both surprised and confused by the question. “I’m feeling much better now thanks to the medicine and magic, as well as that I’ve had a chance to lie down as I mentioned.”

“No no, not _that_ kind of alright. You seem sad. Is something wrong?” Diana had been fine only a few minutes ago before she’d started her stories, so Akko really was lost on what it could have been.

From the look on her friend’s face, she knew she’d hit the nail on the head. Diana looked to the side for a few moments as if contemplating something, then let out a sigh. “It’s nothing serious, just…something trivial that’s affecting me more than it should be as a result of this fever still frazzling my mind.”

“Diana.” Akko wouldn’t accept dancing around an answer like that - if something was making Diana sad, then she wanted to help.

“I…” Diana visibly hesitated, mouth pausing half-open. Akko reached out to hold the other girl’s hand, rubbing soothing circles on the back of it with her thumb and trying to ignore the burning of her cheeks. Diana glanced down at the contact, her cheeks glowing, before giving her a small, gentle smile. Akko’s heart may or may not have skipped a beat at the sight. That smile dropped away as Diana spoke, though. “I answered a question incorrectly earlier.” She spoke slowly and quietly, as if confessing to some grave secret.

“…Huh? Why is that bad?” Akko asked with a tilt of her head, still drawing little circles on the back of Diana’s hand.

Diana looked at her incredulously. “I _failed_ to answer a basic question in class for the first time since I stepped into Luna Nova’s halls. In front of _everybody_ present.” Diana elaborated severely. Oh. _Oh_, of course.

Diana was the star student of Luna Nova, beloved by students and teachers alike for her endless knowledge and magical skill. It was only natural that she’d be upset about messing up for the first time in a class full of people with how much she cared about her presentation and all that.

“It’s fine, Diana.” Akko attempted to reassure her friend with a comforting smile. “You’re sick, nobody expects you to be perfect when you’ve got such a bad fever!” Diana didn’t look convinced, so Akko pushed further. “Not a single person that was there is gonna think any less of you, I promise. And if they _do_, then they aren’t worth listening to anyway!”

There was a slight smile on that pretty face now, Akko could see. Invigorated by her success, she made one final comment. “_I _still think you’re pretty and great.” Akko said happily. Then she paused. Listened over to what she’d just said in her head again, staring wide-eyed at Diana whose face had gone a cherry-red and felt the heat in her own cheeks that said she was no different. “P-Pretty great! You’re pretty great!”

“I-I understand. Thank you, Akko.” Despite Akko’s bumbling, Diana was smiling sincerely again and looking a bit happier than she had been before, so all in all it was a win, even if an embarrassing one. Still, Akko was never one to settle for ‘a bit happier’.

Now that Diana seemed less upset, it was time for Akko to make that smile grow even more until all the negative stuff was well and truly wiped out. A giant grin split her face as an idea formed in her head. Eyes shining, she launched out of her seat and excitedly pointed a finger down at Diana.

“I know what’ll make you feel better!” Akko exclaimed. “A private magic show by the future shooting star of the magical show business; yours truly, Atsuko Kagari!” She smacked her palm into her own chest for emphasis, beaming down at Diana.

The heiress looked back up at her with a growing smile. “Oh? All for me? That certainly does sound quite spectacular.”

Akko grinned from ear to ear. “You bet! If I can make _Vajarois_ laugh, then you bet your tushie I can make a fancy-schmancy gal like you smile! I’ve been practising my routine ideas, too, so I can guarantee you’re gonna be _dazzled_!”

Diana giggled, and if that wasn’t one of the most precious sounds on Earth then Akko didn’t know what was. “Then by all means.” Diana waved her hand in a ‘go on’ motion. “Though,” she began more seriously, “I feel I should remind you that this is the _nurse__’s office._ Please refrain from your ‘flashier’ displays of magic, lest you get kicked out.”

“Want me here after all, huh?” Akko teased with a playful smirk.

Diana coughed into a closed fist as her cheeks changed colour once more. “_Akko_.”

Akko rolled her eyes exaggeratedly. “I know, Diana.” Diana’s eyebrow rose up. “What, do you really think I’d use some ‘flashy’ magic and break something?” The heiress’ eyebrow lifted higher. “Don’t answer that.” Akko said hastily. “Besides, you need rest and I’m not gonna ruin that. I promise.”

Diana held her stern stare a few moments longer before relenting. “Well, in that case, I leave myself to be properly ‘dazzled’, as you put it.”

“Ehehe, leave it to me!” Akko beamed with the power of the sun as she pulled her wand out of its place on her belt and gave it a little experimental swish, green magic trailing after the tip. “Welcome to, uhm…” She paused in thought for a few seconds before perking up in epiphany. “The amazing, wondrous and magical ‘Shooting Star’’s first ever show!” Akko closed her eyes as she lowered herself in a showy bow, one arm out straight behind her and the other wrapped around her stomach.

Diana clapped politely, already unable to fight off the smile creeping across her lips. Akko’s show hadn’t even started yet.

* * *

In that small, white-painted room cramped with far too many beds for its size, a little pocket of joy was forming. Particles of light flitted about Diana’s bed from the offshoots of Akko’s magic, beautiful in and of itself. But the main show was, of course, one ‘Shooting Star’. Diana had to admit she was quite impressed by Akko’s routine.

From creating shadow puppets with her hands that, even after she took her hands away from the light, remained and continued to dance little routines on the walls, to drawing shapes such as cats, dogs and even a crude attempt at Diana herself that the blond couldn’t help but laugh at in the air with simple projection of magic from her wand.

It was wonderful, truly. Humble, but magnificent in its simplicity. Diana couldn’t help but feel similarly to how she had as a child, sat in that large audience and watching Shiny Chariot bring joy to all. She’d seen that self-same spark of talent that Chariot had in Akko many times over the course of their first year, but it was always a treat to see it again. However, this time, there was something else that held Diana’s attention even more than the show itself.

While Akko’s smaller scale ‘private magic show’ was certainly marvellous, the power of the brunette’s passion meant that Diana found herself paying more attention to ‘Shooting Star’ herself. Diana wondered if Akko knew the effect of her passion, of her enthusiasm and attitude with all things magic and fun. Even without the magic to accompany her, Akko’s beaming grin was utterly contagious, and the girl’s enthusiasm was so strong that Diana herself couldn’t help but feel energised and enthusiastic herself.

There was something about the other girl that changed when she was doing performances as well, even quieter ones like this. Diana had been gifted with a glimpse at this side of Akko with Vajarois and couldn’t help but find it incredibly enchanting.

The way Akko simply _glowed_ as she acted out her dream of performing was so alluring, so…_dazzling_ that Diana found it impossible to even look away. In the face of that light, the lingering pains and aches of her fever were pushed to the back of her mind as if they’d never existed in the first place.

Something indescribably warm was blossoming in her chest; a feeling that had been cropping up more and more whenever she was around Akko recently. This time, however, as Diana watched the Japanese witch act out her passion, she found it was growing at an even more uncontrollable rate than usual.

It was…pleasant. Confusing and unknown, but bright and delightful all the same. The more it grew, the more Diana found it difficult to look at anything other than Akko herself instead of the show.

How her crimson eyes sparkled with each new trick, how her smile chased away any negativity or doubt. How her brown locks flew as she danced around, how endearing the excitement in her voice was. Most of all, though, was how Akko’s own joy of the performance was reflected in every single movement, in every single spell and word.

It was impossibly captivating, and Diana couldn’t help it as the warmth in her chest spread through her entire body, nor could she stop the joyous smile that crept across her face. At this point, any and all thoughts of her earlier mess-up in class had been wiped cleanly from her mind.

Half-way through a new trick involving a previously empty cup and some conjured flowers that changed colour every second or so, Akko must have seen the happiness on her face because those red eyes lit up even _brighter_ somehow and she shot Diana what was perhaps the most breath-taking, blinding smile she had ever seen. Diana’s heart began pounding as that beaming look struck like an arrow straight into the heart of that spreading feeling in her chest, igniting it like a bonfire.

In that moment, she finally _understood_.

…Oh dear. Completely unrelated to the fever, her cheeks lit up and she couldn’t stop her eyes from widening slightly. _Oh no._ So _that_ was what the feeling still blooming in her chest was. Not simple gratitude or joy, but…affection.

_Love_.

Even saying it in her head was enough to send a thrill throughout her body. Mustering what willpower she could as the realisation rocked her to her core, she schooled her features lest Akko catch on. Internally, though, everything was in shambles.

Signs she’d missed rapidly flashed through Diana’s one after another, each one throwing her still-malfunctioning brain into even further disarray. In hindsight, it was painfully obvious. The way electric tingles would spread across wherever Akko touched, the way that the brunette’s happiness so often became Diana’s happiness or even simply how she found herself captivated by the simplest things Akko did.

Now that she’d put a name to the emotion that stirred in her chest at those times, they’d taken on a whole new light that left Diana feeling dizzy from the force of it.

Even with her heartbeat pounding loudly in her ears and with her thoughts hazy and muddled, though…looking at Akko who was obliviously continuing with her show and still exuding immense joy, Diana found the chaos and anxiety in her heart and mind settling slowly but surely, steadily being replaced by a calmer acceptance.

There was nobody else, Diana realised. Nobody else she’d rather it be.

If anybody could be trusted with the power to crush Diana’s heart into smithereens or uplift it to new heights, it was Akko. Innocent, sweet and kind Akko, who would never do anything to hurt a friend. With that thought, Diana’s mind finally calmed, though the flames of affection still licked gently at her heart.

Certainly, it was still a shock to her system. But that was for Diana to properly unpack and deal with later, when she had the time to truly start puzzling together what this all meant. For now, she settled herself more properly under the covers to carry on watching her own private magic show.

What this meant for them, what this meant for their friendship, was for later. For the moment, though, as she watched Akko, there was a second sort of joy beyond the show itself she found herself immersing in, tender and sweet.

* * *

Akko was panting with exertion by the end of her impromptu show but couldn’t have wiped the giant grin from her face if she’d tried. It was always such a joyful rush to put on shows like that with magic, even if for a smaller audience, though of course said audience had been _quite_ important this time.

What _really_ had Akko grinning, though, was Diana. The heiress no longer looked upset at all; instead, she was openly laughing and smiling wide enough that it dimpled her cheeks adorably as she clapped. It was enough to send Akko’s own heart soaring into the clouds. Making people smile with her magic was always incredible, but to make Diana Cavendish laugh and smile with her little show felt even more incredible, even more special.

A genuine and open laugh from Diana was such a rare, valuable treasure that Akko simply basked in the sound for a few moments, allowing it to bolster her own happiness tenfold.

“Thank you, thank you!” Akko dipped in a deep bow. “I’ll be here all week!” She waved goodbye to an imaginary crowd, almost able to hear their cheers in her ears, before sitting back down in her chair. Diana had sat up in the bed too and was looking at her with a strange new sparkle in her eyes that took the breath from Akko’s lungs.

“That was wonderful, Akko.” Diana complimented with a smile. “With talent like that, I’m certain you’ll surpass even Chariot herself one day.” She said. And while her tone still had a slightly playful lilt to it, there was also something new in the way she spoke, something soft and sincere.

That, combined with Diana having just said one of the kindest things Akko had ever heard in her whole gosh darn _life,_ was enough to make that now-familiar surge of pink-hued sappy emotion flare up with a whole new level of strength. It set her cheeks ablaze and her heart beating like a hummingbird’s wings.

“Y-You really think so?!” Akko asked animatedly, nearly falling onto the bed with how far she’d leaned out of her chair in excitement.

“I know so.” Diana replied simply, still with the gentle look and tone.

Akko rocked back into her chair with an immensely pleased hum and smile. “I really wanna jump-hug you right now.” She confessed happily. Diana suddenly looked very wary. “You’re sick though, so you’re gonna have to settle for an I.O.U on that, but you’re still the best, Diana. Thank you.” Akko’s expression then changed to a sterner one, voice shifting to match. “Also, you need to be _resting_, so lay back down!”

Diana’s wary look faded, replaced by a completely flat look. “How ever will I survive until then?” She said in perfect monotone. Her lips turned up after a moment, though. “I simply said the truth, Akko. Nothing more.” With her piece said, she did as Akko had asked and slipped back beneath the covers.

While Diana was busying herself with getting comfy, Akko’s warm fuzzies grew even stronger because _oh my god why is Diana so amazing with words_. Akko couldn’t help the sunny beam on her face. Diana really was too precious for this world, she thought. Gosh, did she love her.

Her smile froze in place as her train of thought crashed off its rails and went streaking straight into a boulder, where it proceeded to violently explode. She what now? Since _when?!_

Just this morning her crush hadn’t been _too_ bad, if nearly falling apart whenever they so much as touched and having her mind regularly frazzled when Diana looked particularly pretty counted as ‘not too bad’, but now it had gone far enough that she’d started thinking with the _L word_?!

Still, even though it had taken her by surprise, the intensity of the emotions in her chest left little room for doubt. In that moment, Akko cursed Diana Cavendish and her stupidly charming ways. She just _had_ to go and be sweet with that soft sparkle in her eyes and leave Akko’s poor heart to deal with the aftermath.

Oh, it was _over. _Akko was officially doomed to inevitable heart attack by insanely beautiful and smart blond. That is, if Sucy didn’t tear her to shreds with her teasing before that.

“Akko?” A questioning and concerned voice broke through her thoughts. Akko just barely managed to push through the utter chaos of her thoughts to focus again. Then she saw Diana’s pretty face, eyes squinted slightly in concern as she looked up at her and promptly fell right back into the chaos.

“Y-Yeah?!” She tried to answer amid the ruins of the crashed train. Diana’s look of concern grew stronger.

“Are you…alright?” Diana asked slowly, as if Akko was a deer that might bolt at any moment.

“Of course I am!” Akko said way too quickly. “Why would you think I wasn’t?” Was her voice a few octaves higher or was that just her imagination? She could hardly hear it past the din of her heartbeat.

“Your face is growing extremely red.” Diana’s eyes knitted together in worry. “Perhaps it’s better you leave me to rest after all. I wouldn’t want you to catch this fever yourself.”

“It’s fine, it’s not because of that!” Akko squeaked, desperately trying to get bring back any sort of self-control.

But then Diana just had to speak up again. “Then what is it?”

“I, uh…” Akko looked away to a wall, a finger scratching at her chin in thought. _Think up some kinda excuse. Anything. Think think think. Something that won__’t make her ask any more questions!_ “Just a random thought that popped into my head!” _Why_, her mind mourned.

“Oh?” Diana gazed at Akko curiously. “Why would that make you so red? You don’t have to fib to protect my feelings or feel compelled to stay, especially if you’re beginning to feel sick as well, Akko.” Diana began solemnly. “You yourself spoke of how important rest is earlier, so-”

Though Diana was being considerate, Akko could hear the slight reluctance hiding under the politeness that told her that her friend didn’t really want her to go. Hastily, she tried to reassure her friend. “No, no, it’s the truth! Really!” Diana didn’t look fully convinced yet, so Akko’s motormouth kept going.

Honesty would probably help make it more believable, right? Just a little bit though, nothing too revealing. “I was just thinking about you!” Oh my _god no!_ External Akko’s smile froze on her face, while Internal Akko began screaming uncontrollably as she was engulfed by the flames of embarrassment.

“I-about me?!” Diana actually _sputtered_ as her own hot blush formed_,_ turning to face Akko fully as she lay down. “W-Why…why would that make you blush?” If Akko’s brain cells weren’t currently imploding, she might have noticed the hint of interest and hope in those surprised sapphires.

“I…uhm.” Akko replied dumbly. “T-That is…I mean, uh…” Oh god she was digging herself an even deeper hole, why couldn’t she just get a _single word out?!_ Diana was still staring at her in shock and she needed to _fix this_ but _how?!_

Before Akko could finish digging her own grave, though, the doorknob rattled and startled both girls. A moment later the nurse stepped through with a long-suffering sigh as she muttered something about ‘those reckless kids not caring a lick for safety’. Then she looked up and her eyes widened at the sight of Akko and Diana.

“Oh, I’d nearly forgotten about you two.” She said. “Kagari, you can head back to lessons now - and _don__’t_ try to argue your way into staying just to avoid classes; it won’t work.” The nurse added before Akko could even think about the possibility of saying anything.

Usually, Akko would still try to argue the point and stay since she’d feel bad abandoning a friend, but these were dire circumstances and she needed to get out before she lost the final remnants of her dignity by blurting out too much.

“Ah, uh, of course! I should definitely be getting back!” Akko exclaimed as she shot out of her seat. “C-Copied notes can’t replace the experience of a lesson after all!” She began speed-walking towards the door, turning to Diana on her way out to shoot back one last message. “Get well soon, Diana!”

And before Diana could get in a word edgewise, Akko had sped out the door and slammed it shut behind her loudly enough to send another pang of ache through her skull. The nurse blinked in surprise at the door. “Huh. That was…suspiciously easy.”

Diana, meanwhile, was still staring at the door as her mind raced.

Akko had been thinking about her. Thinking about Diana made Akko blush. Akko had seemed embarrassed and refused to answer when questioned about that. The brunette had made a hasty retreat the moment she’d been given an out, something Diana had not seen her do before. Altogether, the implications were enough to send her heart fluttering wildly.

The nurse came to check on her and Diana answered her questions as politely as she could through her thoughts. For now, she’d keep resting and perhaps take a small nap to regain energy and fight off the fever. Then, the moment it was out of her system, she’d chase Akko down for a more definitive answer. Then after that…come what may. But, somehow, Diana believed it would all turn out for the best.

With her plan finalised, she turned over into a more comfortable position and began trying to relax, thoughts of red eyes and a sunshine grin sending her off to sleep with a small smile and anticipation in her heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I hope you enjoyed!


	4. Day 4 - Moving In/Living Together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by a true story of my own stupidity.

“I’m home!” Diana called out as she entered through the front door to her and Akko’s home. It wasn’t overly large, not like the Cavendish Manor at least, but it was still home - at least for now, until they moved into the manor proper.

They’d both decided that before moving into the manor (which they would need to with Diana as the head of the family, though neither disliked the idea at all), they would move in together separately first in order to have a chance to truly live _together,_ without servants or Daryl, though Diana still made fairly regular visits to the manor to check in on how things were going.

Diana was very glad they had. Living with Akko for the past few years had been wonderful. Arduous at times, such as the Great Incident involving an attempt at a ‘birthday breakfast’ by her girlfriend which had resulted in a horrendous kitchen fire and a _very_ lucky save from Diana before their house had burnt down, but overall still endlessly wonderful.

Waking up to Akko’s sleeping face had quickly grown to be one of Diana’s favourite things, as well as simply being able to constantly be close to one another and know that Akko awaited her whenever she returned home. No matter how difficult or stressful her day, knowing it would end with her adorable girlfriend gave her the strength to get through anything.

Be it through silly boardgames the performer found while out in Blytonbury and brought back for them to play, having friends visit for lunches and dinners or just through having Akko with her, Diana was enjoying life.

After a long, tiring day of work and volunteering at the nearby hospital, though, she was very much ready to simply sit or lie down somewhere soft and cuddle with her girlfriend, perhaps take a nap as well. However, by the time Diana had slipped out of her shoes and hooked her coat onto the coat stand by the door, Akko had yet to appear. Usually, the brunette would have come to greet her with one of those cannonball hugs of hers by now.

A little concerned, Diana called out once more as she began moving through the hall and deeper into the house. “Akko?” …Nothing. Then, Diana heard a strange rustling sound coming from within the living room. Both curious and worried, she moved forward and slowly pushed the door open.

_Why_. Was the first thought that entered her mind at the sight that greeted her. Instead of being greeted by the neatly organised living room she’d come to love, she was instead met with utter chaos.

Every pillow from the sofa had been taken off and thrown around the room haphazardly. The drawers in the TV unit and coffee table were all half-open and their contents had been left strewn about on the carpeted ground under and next to them. Even the neatly organised collection of knick-knacks Akko had picked up over the years were in shambles on their shelves. All remnants of the once-neatly organised room were gone.

In the middle of all this horrible mess stood one Atsuko Kagari, hair down and dressed in her classic white t-shirt and red shorts combo as she frantically dug between the cracks in the sofa with her empty right hand and the TV remote in the left, looking immensely frustrated about something.

Like Diana, she’d grown a fair bit taller as the years went by, though she was still shorter than the blond by enough of a margin that she had to stand on her tiptoes to kiss Diana’s cheek properly.

“Oh, welcome back Diana! I didn’t hear you come in!” Akko said without stopping her scavenging, knitted brows and frown vanishing as she flashed Diana a joyful smile that, even years after they’d started dating, still managed to make her heart skip a beat or two. She resisted its pull for the moment, though; there were more important things to do here than get caught up in her own emotions. Like find out what on _earth_ had possessed the brunette to ruin Diana’s carefully organised living room.

“…Akko, darling.” Diana began with the calmest, most collected voice she could muster. “Why, exactly, have you torn our living room apart?”

“Oh, right.” Akko looked around at the destruction for a moment, lifting her empty hand out from the crevices of the sofa to scratch at the back of her head sheepishly. “I’ll clean it up, I swear! I just can’t find the remote _anywhere,_ so I had to start digging deeper.”

Diana blinked very slowly. Moved her gaze from Akko’s face to the remote that was _visibly_ in her hand. Fought off a brain aneurysm. Was…Akko attempting some sort of joke? “You…can’t find the TV remote?” Akko nodded quickly, giving the room a narrow-eyed scan as her brow furrowed in irritation once more.

“I’ve been looking for like half an hour at this point!” Akko exclaimed, looking to Diana for her to confirm that _yes_, that is indeed ridiculous. Diana nodded stiffly, still unable to stop herself from glancing at the remote in Akko’s hand and wondering if she was being pranked. “I fell asleep watching the TV,” Akko explained with a pout, “and now it’s just…_vanished!__” _She threw her arms up in exasperation. “I’m starting to wonder if there’s some prankster spirit or something messing with me.”

Oh, by Jennifer, Akko was serious. Diana couldn’t help but sigh in exasperation, though an amused smile played upon her lips all the same. This whole situation was ridiculous and utterly silly, but to a Diana tired from a long day of work it was stupidly charming in its _Akko_ness, enough so that it was already chasing away the heaviness in her eyes and the aches of her limbs. A dash of Akko truly was all she needed to find her day brightening it seemed, though she’d already known that for years.

“I see.” Diana said gravely, fighting back laughter. “Well, that simply won’t do. How about I help you search, then? I’m certain it won’t remain hidden much longer with both of us on the case.” That is, with Diana who was actually _aware_ of where it was helping it wouldn’t. Although she wouldn’t tell Akko immediately; partly out of curiosity to see how long this would go on for, but mostly because it was too entertaining to ruin this early.

Akko didn’t notice the veiled amusement in her voice. “Yay! Thank you, Diana!” She pulled Diana into a big hug which the blond reciprocated easily, though she grimaced when she realised that Akko had wiped a little of the grime on her hand from the sofa-digging onto her back. “With the both of us searching, we’ll find it easy peasy!”

With that, the brunette jumped back and returned to digging through the sofa’s cracks. Diana took one final glance at the remote still clutched in Akko’s hand and bit back a chuckle before moving to ‘search’ (read: clean and reorganise, since there was little point in searching) through one of the still open drawers of their coffee table with a smile and a shake of her head.

“By the way, how was your day? You looked pretty tired when you came in.” Akko questioned, glancing quickly over to Diana before continuing with her rummaging.

“Work was fairly typical, but yes, I am feeling a bit more fatigued than usual - there were a few more patients at the hospital than usual that needed extra magical care.” Diana answered, still sorting the various items back into the shelf under the pretence of searching. “Nothing too taxing, no need to worry.” She added when Akko gave her a concerned look.

Her girlfriend still hadn’t forgotten the time she’d had to be called in to pick up an exhausted Diana that could barely move with how much magic she’d expended on healing, it seemed. Even though she’d been scolded relentlessly for being ‘stupid, silly and too selfless’ as well as exhausted beyond all belief, being nursed to health by Akko through endless cuddles and kisses had at least been quite enjoyable. “Honestly, the most tiring part was the walking with how far apart they all were rather than the spells themselves - the stairs there feel as if they go on forever.” She finished with a chuckle.

Akko giggled. “You should join me on my morning runs more!” She suggested enthusiastically. “That way you’ll be able to conquer those cruel stairs no problem!”

“Akko, those ‘runs’ of yours are more akin to _cross-country marathons. _Do you not recall the last time I tried? I was ready to write my own obituary there and then.” Diana shivered at the memory - Akko’s ‘runs’ were monstrous in both length and pacing and she would forever regret the day she’d decided to try joining her girlfriend for one. _Nightmarish_ couldn’t even begin to describe the pain she’d experienced that summer’s day. The things she did for love, and Akko’s unfairly effective puppy-dog eyes.

Akko made a ‘pshh’ sound, waving her hand dismissively as she rolled her eyes, though she was still smiling. “Don’t be so dramatic, Diana. You did great for your first try! Just gotta stick with it and you’ll get better in no time.”

“I love you, Akko, but I don’t think I’ll _survive_ long enough for that. I’m going to have to pass.”

Akko pouted grumpily at her, though her cheeks had gone a little red at the ‘love’ comment as they always did, stopping her search to put her fists on her hips. She _still_ somehow didn’t notice the remote. Diana lifted a hand up to cover her smile. “I love you too, but I’ll get you to join me for another run one of these days, mark my words!” Diana sincerely hoped she never did but knew deep down that if Akko weaponised those puppy-dog eyes of hers again then she’d be done for.

Luckily for her, the brunette gave up for now. Rather than continuing her sofa-search, Akko finally moved instead to ransack the TV stand and its surroundings even further. Diana winced as she saw even more drawer contents being emptied haphazardly onto the ground, quickly turning back around to not have to watch the mess grow. “How about you?” Diana asked, partly to distract herself from the noises of destruction behind her, but mostly because she genuinely wanted to know. “Is the routine for your next show still coming along nicely?”

“Yeah!” Akko said excitedly. “Ursula’s been giving me some more tips, so I just _know_ I’m really gonna wow people with this one!”

“I look forward to seeing it live, then. I’m sure it’ll be yet another incredible spectacle that people will speak of for months to come.” Diana said with a smile, finally looking back to Akko and doing her best to keep smiling despite the immense clutter she could now see. How exactly one person could make an already terrible mess even worse in such a short span of time was baffling, but such were the ways of the mysterious creature that was Atsuko Kagari. “Just make sure you actually remember your lines this time.” She suggested playfully.

“Hey!” Akko whipped around to pout at her. “That was _one _time_._ Besides, the crowd loved my improv! _I__’d_ say it went even better than originally planned because of it.” She finished proudly, with her chin held high.

“You definitely handled it well, though that poor agent of yours seemed to have a heart attack when it happened.” Diana conceded with a sincere smile. “I have full faith that you’ll do amazingly this time as well, love.” Akko blushed and beamed happily, running over to quickly hug her and mutter a quick ‘love you’ in thanks before returning to her search.

Diana gladly returned both the hug and the sentiment, while also trying her best to push down the laugh that bubbled up in her throat when the remote dug into her back uncomfortably. At this point she was genuinely growing a bit concerned for Akko’s attention span, but it was still illogically endearing in its silliness.

They spoke more about their days as Akko searched and Diana pretended to follow suit while cleaning things up. Diana complained to a patiently listening Akko about one of the more frustrating staff members at the hospital that didn’t think much of magic and thus didn’t exactly appreciate her efforts as much as the patients or other staff did. They had been _particularly_ vocal about that point today, one of many factors which contributed to her tiredness.

Before she’d even finished speaking, Akko had seemed ready to march out the door and go to, quote, ‘give that _idiot_ a piece of her mind’, despite not even knowing who they were or whether they were still even there.

It was heart-warming and charming to see her being protective but, as much as she’d have secretly liked to see the brunette tear into them, picking fights wasn’t likely to help so she’d convinced Akko to stay, though it took a fair few smooches to properly ‘convince’ her. Diana was more than equipped to deal with simple bias against magic on her own anyway, especially since most of the staff were big fans of her work.

Akko, meanwhile, had apparently had to face their Dreaded Neighbours to pick up a package she’d missed from oversleeping that morning. ‘Dreaded’ because they were the type to try and rope you into a thirty-minute conversation just from seeing each other in your respective gardens. Both knew this from experience at this point.

They were nice people, yes, but that didn’t exactly mean much when Diana was trying to _get to work_ and they just weren’t _stopping_. Today, it had apparently taken Akko only fifteen or so minutes total to escape from their clutches - a new record! Diana was suitably proud, while also suitably pitying, comforting the other woman with a quick kiss on the cheek.

After exchanging a few more stories and searching for around twenty minutes, Akko abruptly let out a loud groan. “Ugh, why is this so hard to find?! It can’t have gone _that_ far could it? At this point I’m wondering if I ate it in my sleep or something!” She flopped onto the now fixed and re-pillowed sofa, arms falling to her sides and eyes clamped shut in exhausted annoyance. Diana sat down more primly next to her, unable to stop herself from staring at Akko’s left hand which _still_ held the remote.

Diana had reached the point now where her disbelief was so strong, her incredulity so palpable, that she’d reached a sort of zen with it - why yes, Akko had somehow managed to avoid realising she was literally holding the object of her search for a full fifty minutes if her earlier comment of how long she’d been searching was to be believed, what of it?

“Dianaaaa.” A cute, whining voice brought her out of her reverie. Diana refocused to find Akko’s head had lazily leaned to the side to look at her.

It was a cute sight, one that brought a small smile to her lips. “Yes, Akko?”

“Isn’t there some kinda spell or something to make this easier?” Akko groused. “We’re witches and magic is amazing, can’t it find one measly little remote?”

Diana rapped her knuckles slowly against her chin in thought. An idea was forming in her head, one that had her barely managing to push back a mischievous grin. “Well…there is one spell that might be of use.” She said carefully.

Akko shot back up to liveliness in an instant, sitting up with impressive speed. “Eh?! Why didn’t you say so sooner?!”

“Ah, well, it’s a lesser known branch so it hadn’t crossed my mind until now.” Which was close enough to the truth at least. “It’s a sonar spell of sorts, which sends out little lights which will locate and attach to whatever the user wishes to find.” Diana explained, standing up to grab her wand from its place on her trouser belt.

Akko followed suit quickly, practically bouncing in place from excitement. “That’s so useful!_”_ She gushed. “Teach it to me after?”

“Of course, Akko.” Diana agreed easily, shooting her a quick smile. “For now, though, let me solve this issue for us.” It was getting harder to hide her smirk. With a swish and flick of her wand, she cast the spell. “Leoht Finden.”

Little green motes of light spread out from her wand and floated in place for several seconds. Then, as one, they quickly flew to the remote in Akko’s left hand and began glowing brightly.

Akko’s eyes followed them down and Diana watched as finally, _finally,_ she froze up in realisation. The brunette’s eyes had gone incredibly wide and she was gaping like a fish down at her hand in sheer disbelief. Diana couldn’t stifle her giggles anymore, bursting out into hearty laughter at last. Instantly, Akko’s head swivelled back up to stare dumbfounded at Diana. A blush quickly spread across her cheeks, a combination of embarrassment and anger.

“You _knew! _You _totally_ knew this whole time, didn’t you?!” Diana could hardly even _see_ Akko through the tears of mirth that had gathered in her eyes but nodded all the same. While she felt bad about laughing in the face of Akko’s distress, the whole situation was just far too amusing to not. Diana hadn’t laughed this hard in _weeks_, and it felt incredibly refreshing_._ “I’ve been played by my own girlfriend! You traitor! Oh, I feel so stupid oh my god, oh my _god I__’m so stupid why._”

“You’re-you’re not stupid, Akko.” Diana tried, with varying success, to stifle her giggles long enough to reassure her girlfriend. “This s-sort of thing happens to people, it doesn’t mean you’re unintelligent.”

“Yeah, well, _you_ didn’t just spend nearly an hour looking for something that was _in your hand the whole time_. I _feel_ pretty stupid.” Akko argued, cheeks still red and voice pitched high in embarrassment. She threw the remote onto the sofa with impressive force, grumbling about how it was a ‘traitorous, evil thing’ for tricking her.

Now that Diana’s laughter had begun to die down, she wiped a final tear of merriment from her eye and reached for Akko’s now empty hands with her own to comfort her. “I’m sorry, Akko, I just couldn’t resist. If it helps, I thought it was far cuter than it was embarrassing.”

Akko didn’t look like she was feeling very comforted. “At least _someone_ enjoyed that, I guess. Argh, I can’t even stay mad at you and your stupidly cute laughter or your sweet comments. So _unfair._” Akko whined, stomping her foot against the floor sulkily. Even though they were grumpy ones, Diana’s chest warmed at the compliments.

“Well, is there any way I can make this unfairness up to you, perhaps?” Diana asked, squeezing Akko’s hands with her own as she stepped closer to the other woman.

“Well…” Akko glanced to the sofa. “I _might_ be willing to forgive your betrayal if you let me cuddle you to my heart’s content. _Maybe._ But you better really wow me with those cuddles, missy!”

Well, that was certainly something Diana could get on-board with. That had been her original goal arriving home after all. “I shall do my very best, then.” She moved to sit on the sofa, Akko immediately sitting on her lap and snuggling in close after. They didn’t let go of each other’s hands the whole way.

“…Hey, Diana?” Akko spoke up a little bit after she’d settled.

“Hm?”

“…I’m still mad at you.” She said petulantly, pouting into Diana’s blue shirt.

Diana nearly chuckled again at the cute whine but managed to stop herself before she _actually_ made Akko mad. Her lips still curved up, though. “I’m still sorry, if it helps.”

“Mm…I guess I can forgive you, since I’m gracious and you’re a good cuddler.” Akko declared.

Diana giggled lightly. “I’m thankful for your mercy, oh gracious one.” Akko giggled, pleased, as she snuggled in further.

A moment of silence passed before a quiet mumble came from the girl in her arms. “…Love you.”

Diana’s heart melted as it always did at those words. Leaning her head down, she kissed the top of Akko’s head and murmured a reply into those soft locks. “I love you too.” With that, companionable silence overtook them once more as they cuddled on the sofa, Akko on Diana’s lap and in her arms and Diana with Akko’s arms wrapped around her as well.

It seemed her love had begun to drift off a little, likely tired from her long search. Diana herself wasn’t far behind as the toils of the day finally caught up with her fully. Before she fell to the allure of slumber, though, one final smile graced her lips as she looked down at the girl in her arms.

Only Akko could turn a tiring and dull day into one lively and fun enough to make Diana burst out laughing with nothing more than her own natural charm and goofiness. Living with Akko truly was wonderful, she thought in the last moments before the fog of sleep overtook her completely.

Truly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...me? Releasing a chapter that's not 5k+ words? Baffling. I hope you all enjoy as always!


	5. Day 5 - Physical Affection

Today was a good day, Akko thought with a smile. Why, you might ask?

Well, that’d be because through a series of convoluted events that morning, Akko had made one of her greatest mistakes yet. Not great in the sense of _big_, like ‘oh wow that’s a giant mushroom monster that just came out of our potion huh’, but instead the ‘oh boy this is _amazing_’ kinda great. The _best_ kind of great.

It all started when Diana had been helping her with Fusion Magic during a rare early-morning study session, which was where two separate witches cast their magic together to get a super strong spell; an area she’d been stumped on for _ages_.

When she’d been struggling to manage even one measly cast and started to doubt herself, Diana had done her Diana thing where she said a lot of fancy words that basically translated to ‘I love you and believe you’, topped off with a sweet kiss for reassurance. This, naturally, led to Akko’s heart practically exploding with affection, love, and a desire to be close to the girl she loved.

_That_ then led to her making an itty-bitty little mistake when they next tried to cast a spell. Instead of their magic just connecting and synergising to cast the spell like it was meant to, her extreme desire to hug and kiss Diana and just be close to her meant that her magic intertwined with Diana’s in a more…_interesting_ way. Basically, their magic ended up tied together_ quite_ a bit more deeply than it should have been because Akko’s had been _very enthusiastic_ about fulfilling her desire to be close to her girlfriend.

How did that make her day amazing, though? Well, that’d be because a side-effect of having their magic mixed together was that, if separated for too long, they’d begin to feel more and more tired and their spells would lose strength and even fail as a result. In order to ‘recharge’ their magic and energy, they had to be physically touching each other - be it hugs, handholding or kisses, anything would work. _How_ was that not completely amazing?!

But that wasn’t even the best bit, oh no no no. The best bit was that when they’d gone to Professor Ursula for help and found out that the best fix would be to wait it out for around twenty-four hours until it wore off, their professor had promised to tell their other teachers what had happened so that they’d be ‘understanding’.

Which meant Akko could hold Diana’s hand, or hug her, or kiss her on the cheek in the middle of class and _get away with it_. All because they were technically ‘sick’ and had to do so to remain energetic and able to use magic throughout the day. Everything had been in place for this day to be one of the best _ever_ for Akko.

But then, she realised something terrible, something unspeakably horrible. That is, that Akko had separate classes to Diana for the morning. She had been, and still very much was, devastated at the realisation. But, at the very least, Diana had promised that they could meet up in the interims between classes to get their quick dose of cuddles in. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to keep Akko going.

Thanks to that promise, she’d managed to survive through the exhaustion and agony of Professor Pisces’ lesson first-thing, although she’d struggled to pay attention even more than usual. The moment the class ended, Akko had shot out of the room like a bullet to go cash in on Diana’s promise.

The blond had been flustered when nearly every other student in the hallway stopped to stare at the school’s resident ‘power couple’ (Amanda’s words, which had spread throughout Luna Nova alarmingly fast) going at it again, but she had reciprocated Akko’s bear-hug and seemed to feel similar relief as their mutual exhaustion was chased away by the tingly, electric sparks of magic between them. By the time she managed to pry a blissed-out Akko off her, they’d both been very nearly late to their next lessons.

And now, finally, the last lesson of the morning was over. Akko was insanely tired and in emotional agony from being separated from her girlfriend and being denied the opportunity to have her in-class morning cuddles, but it was _done_, she was free at last_._

The moment the professor dismissed them, Akko was flying out of her seat, tiredness be _damned_. Barely even pausing to gather up her things, she bolted out of the room, nearly knocking an irritated Sucy over in her haste. She felt a bit bad about leaving them behind, but this was of _vital importance! _Even knowing that she’d probably be paying for that later as Sucy’s ‘guinea pig’ didn’t dampen her excitement at all as she ran to the dining hall, where Diana would hopefully be.

* * *

Despite her exhaustion, Akko arrived at the dining hall in record time. And lo and behold, sat at their usual table, was Diana along with Hannah and Barbara. Immediately Akko called out and began rushing over, Diana turning at the sound of her name just in time to get a glimpse of excited red eyes and a giant grin before she was tackle-hugged. In an instant, Akko had the other girl clamped in a bear hug with Diana’s arms locked to her sides within her embrace and her head resting on that fluffy blond-green hair.

That she was sitting down and Akko was standing up didn’t help much with comfort, but even with the awkward positioning they could both feel the heavenly sparking of their magic as it intermingled, and their tiredness was chased away. It was _wonderful_.

“A-Akko, while I appreciate that you’re glad to see me and are likely as tired as I am,” she glanced to the side to see Hannah and Barbara smirking knowingly at her, face dusting red before continuing, “p-perhaps we should position ourselves more comfortably?”

Akko just hummed, already feeling pretty darn comfortable where she was. Hannah and Barbara moved up to openly giggling now.

After it was clear that her girlfriend wasn’t planning on moving, Diana changed her approach. “I can’t eat like this, Akko.” She pleaded. With one final slightly embarrassed glance at her two friends, she spoke one more time, voice softer and quieter. “And at the very least, I’d like to…be able to reciprocate your affections, which I can’t do like this.”

_That_ did it. With impressive speed Akko let go to sit down on her left instead, leaning her head on Diana’s shoulder and wrapping her arms around the other girl. In response, Diana hesitantly tilted her own head to rest on top of Akko’s and curled a single arm around the brunette’s waist. In that moment, as she snuggled in closely, Akko knew bliss at last.

“Man, Akko,” Hannah began with a teasing smirk, “you didn’t even grab _food_ before coming to smother Diana with affection, you must really be desperate.”

“Honestly,” Barbara nodded with a similar expression, “rather than filling her stomach, it seems she had to satisfy a _different_ kind of hunger first, huh?”

Hannah nodded in agreement. “Had to recharge those new Diana Batteries of hers before anything else; she just loves you that much, Diana, isn’t that just so sweet?” Both shared a look and chuckled.

While Diana seemed flustered by that concept, lifting her head off Akko’s and taking a _long_ sip of her tea to hide her blush, Akko remained unaffected. In fact, she nodded in agreement as her content smile grew wider. “Food is for later. Gotta refill my pretty girlfriend batteries now.” Said girlfriend’s sip grew deeper even though the cup had run dry as she buried her face in its shadows. Discreetly, she pulled Akko a little closer.

“I’unno about you,” a rougher voice began with humour evident in their tone, “but I’m pretty sure Akko’s _always_ had a ‘Diana Battery’. It’s just literal now.” A moment later Amanda, Jasminka and Constanze all walked into Akko’s view, sitting down across from them with full plates of food.

“Though if you ask me, seems princess here’s ‘Akko Battery’ is also running pretty dry too with the way she’s clinging back just as much. Good to see you gettin’ over your fear of PDA, Diana!” Amanda congratulated teasingly, smug smirk firmly affixed to her face as she clapped loudly. Jasminka smiled proudly at her as Constanze also shot her an approving thumbs up, while Hannah and Barbara’s giggling only grew louder.

Even though she’d just been called out on it, Diana’s grip on Akko didn’t slack in the least as she put her now-empty cup of tea down to reveal an icy glare pointed Amanda’s way. Though her cheeks were still speckled red, her voice was calmer as she spoke. “It’s only natural for us to c-cud…hold each other like this considering the circumstances.”

…Akko could sense an opportunity brewing here. Doing her best to keep the amusement out of her voice, she pulled back a little to look up at Diana with her best, most sad-looking puppy-dog eyes and spoke up quietly. “…So, you don’t actually want to cuddle with me? You’re just doing it because you have to…?” Akko asked as dejectedly as she could. Diana’s eyes blew wide open in shock as she froze up. Amanda nearly choked on her bite of mashed potatoes in laughter while Constanze and Jasminka pat her back as she cough-laughed painfully.

Diana, meanwhile, was panicking. “I-well, that is-of course I do, Akko,” she started hastily, all traces of that previous calm completely gone, “you know well that I enjoy it as much as you do! I always wish to…” she glanced to the side at their friends, visibly gathering courage before she gulped and continued, “cuddle with you.” She confessed at last, blue eyes pleading with Akko to believe her. Hannah and Barbara ‘aww’ed teasingly in the background. Amanda guffawed loudly. Diana’s blush worsened, but she didn’t break eye contact.

In the face of such a cute confession, Akko’s sad act broke apart. “Aww! You’re such a sweetheart!” She gushed happily, grinning as she snuggled back up to Diana again.

For the other girl to have admitted that she enjoyed cuddles as much as Akko in front of their friends was an impressive feat of courage for her typically PDA-phobic girlfriend, so Akko rewarded her with an extra-special kiss on the cheek. Pleasantly tingling magic sparked at the contact and Diana’s eyes widened as her face went up in flames, completely freezing up against Akko with a squeak.

Amanda, who had only just managed to recover from her previous laughing fit, fell into hysterics once more. Before proper teasing could begin anew, however, a plate of food (potatoes, who woulda guessed) plopped down in front of Akko. Following the hand holding the tray lead her to Lotte, who smiled down at her as she sat to her left. Sucy followed suit, sitting to Lotte’s left.

“We saw you without a plate when we walked in, so we grabbed you one in-case you were hungry.” Lotte explained kindly, gentle smile crinkling her eyes behind her glasses. Akko was suitably awe-struck over the absolute _treasures_ that were her friends. While Diana was still as stiff as a statue next to her, she temporarily separated to wrap her arm around Lotte’s shoulders in a one-armed hug, the other moving to hold Diana’s hand instead.

“You two are the _best_!” Akko shouted gleefully. Then, with a grin, she waved her hand in a ‘come on’ motion around Lotte’s shoulders to beckon Sucy to join the hug. As expected, Sucy shot her an incredulous look of pure disgust and turned back to her food.

Sadly, she was too far away for Akko to reach over and yank her into the hug like she usually did. Lotte, at least, smiled and hugged her back before she returned to Diana’s side to resume cuddling her statue of a girlfriend.

Eventually, ice statue Diana thawed out and began functioning semi-normally again, though it was clear, to most everyone’s amusement, that she was still off-kilter from the kiss with her cute blush and slightly trembling hands. By the time they’d all finished eating and chatting, Diana recovered enough to fully function once more, and both of them were feeling refreshed and re-invigorated to continue their day.

Luckily, their last few lessons were together, which meant that finally, _finally_, Akko’s wonderful day could properly begin.

* * *

When they arrived to class, Akko immediately plopped herself down right next to Diana. Sucy, who had been following behind them, dragged Lotte off to the other side of the classroom so she ‘didn’t have to be anywhere near the lovebirds’. Hannah and Barbara followed suit to ‘give them some privacy’. Nothing too out of the ordinary - they usually sat next to each other in whatever classes they could after becoming an item.

What _was_ new, was Akko immediately wrapping her right arm around Diana’s waist and pulling her in closely right in the middle of the classroom. It wasn’t like she hadn’t _tried_ before, but the blond had always put a swift stop to it for fear of being punished by the teachers with the promise of cuddles ‘later’, which was always _way_ too far away for Akko.

This time, though, even as her girlfriend whisper-shouted with a cherry-red blush about how ‘brazen’ Akko was being and about how they could simply hold hands under the table for their contact, she had simply turned and asked Diana if she genuinely didn’t want to cuddle like this. While she still looked embarrassed, she sealed her own fate when she was unable to say ‘no’.

So, with a happy grin, Akko pulled her even closer and internally ‘squee’ed in glee when Diana’s arm snaked around her waist again. It really was amazing to be able to cuddle her girlfriend openly in the middle of class without fear of punishment, even though she knew Finnelan would be coming through that door any moment from now.

And speak of the devil; the classroom door opened and Finnelan came walking in seconds later. All the whispers and tittering immediately died down as she scanned the classroom sternly, gaze freezing on Akko and Diana _blatantly_ cuddling in the middle of her classroom. Akko shot her a sparkling grin. Next to her, Diana dropped her quill to lift her palm up to her reddening face.

Their professor grimaced and looked like she _sorely_ wanted to say something but held her tongue and simply begun the lesson. Akko basked in the rare victory over Finnelan, but only for a little bit - there was something she needed to do now, after all.

_It was finally time._ She’d been looking forward to this all day - it was the reason she’d been able to endure the agony that was two lessons without Diana (and the agony of being tired as a result, but the emotional damage was infinitely worse), one of the things that had kept her going. That is, being able to properly cuddle Diana in broad daylight during a lesson without fear of being told off by any of the teachers like usual whenever she tried.

Just for today, she was free to hug and snuggle as she pleased. How could she _not_ use that opportunity to its fullest? The opportunity to see her usually calm and composed girlfriend blush adorably at public affection was _always_ worth taking, doubly so when the cuddles were even better than normal thanks to magical shenanigans.

So, a few minutes into the lesson, she started her work. Diana was focused on the lesson, so she didn’t notice her impending doom-by-cuddles as Sneaky Akko scooted closer in tiny little increments. Anticipation drummed her heart in a steady beat as she activated Step One of her plan - leaning her head on Diana’s shoulder.

The moment she did so the blond immediately stiffened up and, with a quick glance, Akko could see her cheeks had, predictably, gone crimson. She couldn’t help the self-congratulatory smile that spread across her face at the sight. A blushing Diana really was just too precious.

Diana glanced at her with wide, surprised eyes. “Akko?” She whispered quietly, voice shaking slightly.

“Yeah?” Akko replied innocently.

“Are you…okay? D-Did you perhaps come closer because you’re feeling worse?”

“Nah, I just wanted to be closer to you.” Akko said as if it were simple fact. Which, well, it was.

Diana’s eyes went wide and her face flushed even further. “O-Oh.” Was all she said, pitch a few octaves higher than usual. She went back to focusing on the lesson, though it was obvious she was still feeling affected by the way her quill was trembling as she wrote. _Cute_.

Akko left her in peace for a few more minutes, simply enjoying the feeling of being this close to Diana and getting to watch Finnelan grit her teeth as she let Akko get away with it whenever she looked over. Today really was a good day after all. When she felt the soft skin of Diana’s cheek nestle hesitantly on top of her head, the warm fuzzies in her chest only grew warmer and fuzzier. Gosh, life was just the _best_.

But as good as life was, she wasn’t fully satisfied yet. She couldn’t say she’d made the most of this situation if she didn’t try her favourite activity of them all, after all. In other words, it was time for Step Two to come into play. Step Two involved Akko’s ultimate weapon when it came to getting her girlfriend flustered but secretly (though she was terrible at hiding it) happy in public.

Secret kisses. Those were usually where Diana drew the line because it wasn’t ‘decent’ or whatever, but Akko had a sneaking feeling that things would be different today.

With her head resting on Diana’s shoulder, it was easy as pie to quickly spin her head and kiss Diana’s uniform-covered shoulder. A giggle built up in her throat as she felt Diana freeze up against her, her grip going slack on her quill enough that it fell with a little splatter of ink, but she managed to keep it in and not alert Finnelan - just barely. Diana glanced down at her again, and this time even the tips of her ears were dusted with red.

“_A-Akko._” She whispered desperately.

“Hmm?” Akko turned again both to kiss her shoulder again as well as to hide her own smirk.

Her voice trembled slightly as she spoke. “Just because our teachers are allowing us to be…_closer_ doesn’t mean you should push it like this, Akko.”

“What, you mean like _this_?” After a quick check that Finnelan wasn’t watching, Akko grabbed Diana’s hand and pulled it to her mouth to drop a light kiss on it. Diana went stiff as a board and let out what was perhaps the most adorable hamster-squeak Akko had ever heard from her.

Mischievous smirk now fully on display, she quickly pressed another one to Diana’s hand before the blond yanked it away, looking as if someone had sprayed her cheeks with vibrant red paint. “If you want me to stop then just say the word,” Akko paused for a moment as Finnelan turned back to the class, waiting until she’d finished talking before continuing, “and I promise I’ll stop right away.”

Diana opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Akko took the opportunity to give the other girl another shoulder-kiss, already able to sense her incoming victory. And, just as predicted, Diana visibly fought with herself for a few moments before her mouth shut with a click. She huffed and turned back to the lesson with burning cheeks, but still didn’t speak a single word of denial.

_Victory._

For the rest of the lesson, she planted sneaky kisses on Diana’s shoulder, cheek and hand while paying absolutely no attention to the lesson at all. There were far more important things to study, like the cute expressions Diana made with each show of affection. The heiress silently endured the onslaught of love, eventually even beginning to get used to it and starting to actively lean into the smooches - no doubt unable to resist the pure loveliness that was Akko’s amazing kisses.

When they were dismissed at last and freed to go to their next lesson, Diana had breathed a high-pitched, trembly sigh of relief before beginning to relentlessly scold Akko for nearly the entire way to their lesson with Professor Ursula. Even as she was ranting, though, Diana’s hand remained tightly clasped with Akko’s.

Naturally, even after having been scolded for it, Akko didn’t let up in their Magical Astrology class either. Oh no, she was _worse_. With Finnelan, she’d had to be more careful. With Professor Ursula, who was not only more relaxed and light-hearted but actually liked Akko, it was only inevitable that she’d still be making the most of their situation. How could she not?

Even ignoring the fact that she got to enjoy PDA with Diana, which also brought out the national treasure that was Embarrassed-But-Lovestruck-Diana, the sparks of magic that crackled between them with each point of contact meant that these weren’t just _normal_ everyday cuddles. They were _magical_ cuddles, both literally and metaphorically. The best darn cuddles they’d both ever had in their lives. Why the heck would anyone squander a chance like that?!

Diana felt the same, even if she hadn’t outright said as such. It was blatantly obvious in the way she drank up the contact as much as Akko did, leaning into every touch and kiss, letting out little pleased sighs and even snuggling in closer to Akko over time. It seemed she’d resigned herself to her fate and realised that the only answer was to go with the flow. So, spurred on by the circumstances and the fact that Diana was clearly enjoying it even if she was still embarrassed about being affectionate in public, of _course_ they cuddled all throughout their final lesson.

All good things had to come to an end eventually, though. When Professor Ursula finally dismissed them all for the day, Diana had mentioned that she had some essays and other homework that needed to be done and was going to return to her dorm.

Needless to say, Akko tagged along. She had an essay or two of her own that she’d been hoping to get Diana to quality check anyway, so she was more than happy to. Studying and doing homework was always more fun with company anyway, even without the prospect of being able to snuggle up in the process. _With_ the knowledge that they’d be cuddling and then sleeping in Diana’s super comfy bed for the night as they rode out the last of the magic’s effects, Akko was downright _excited_ to go and do homework.

Truly, today was a day of wonder.

* * *

“Aaand done!” Akko declared happily, dotting the last full stop of her essay’s last sentence with a proud grin. Diana, sat next to her on the bed as she checked over her own essay work for the third time, looked over and gave Akko an equally proud smile. They’d both changed into more comfortable clothes as day turned to dusk - Akko had popped back to her dorm to grab her classic shirt and shorts combo while Diana had gotten changed into her light blue nightgown in the meantime.

“Good work, Akko. Professor Ursula will doubtless be happy to see the hard work you put into it.” She praised sincerely.

“I hope so,” Akko said as she turned to flop back-first into Diana’s lap, the blond barely managing to yank her paper back before it was crushed, “my last one didn’t turn out so great so I wanna try make it up to her with this one, y’know?”

“I understand.” Diana spoke warmly, smiling down at her. “It’s an admirable goal, Akko, and one I’m sure you’ve achieved.”

Akko giggled gleefully, reaching her arms up to wrap around Diana’s neck and pull her down for a quick kiss on the cheek. Just like earlier the heiress’ cheeks dusted red, but this time there were no prying eyes or teachers to worry about, so she dipped down with a content smile to give Akko one in return.

Pulling back, she tried to refocus on her paper to complete the last few quality checks before she was certain it was up to her ideal standard. ‘Tried’ being the operative word here, because when she lifted it back above her lap and thus over Akko, the brunette whined and batted it away like an irritated cat.

“C’mon Diana, you’ve checked that over like three times and only actually edited it _once_. It’s gotta be up to snuff at this point, right? We should snuggle up and rest instead!” In response, Diana stared sternly down at her.

“Akko, I’m merely being thorough. If you have the time and means to ensure your work is the best it can be, you should always take it.”

Akko opened her mouth to retort, only to be stopped by Diana holding up a finger as she reached out to her desk and placed the papers down on its wooden surface.

“…_But,_ I suppose it’s not due in until the day after tomorrow,” she began with a fond smile as she looked down again at her girlfriend, “so I can afford to postpone my editing for now and pay more attention to my lovely girlfriend as she demands.”

“Yaay!” Akko sprung up out of Diana’s lap before moving to lie down on the left side of the bed with her back to the desk. With an excited grin and a sparkle in her eyes, she patted the spot in front of her in clear invitation. With a fondly exaggerated eye-roll Diana lay down as well, arms already spread out in preparation; preparation that paid off as Akko immediately reached out to pull her into a tight embrace.

Getting rare, limited edition classroom cuddles with Diana was amazing, but there was something about being able to just hold each other close in private that was just unbeatable. Well, really, she knew what it was. Blushing and embarrassed Diana was definitely a treat to see, yeah, but this more relaxed and content Diana that was just basking in their physical contact had to be Akko’s favourite of them all.

With love stirring in her heart, she leaned further into the embrace to the point where their foreheads were practically touching, magic sparking between them once more, and just revelled in being able to hold the girl she loved close like this.

“I think I’m gonna miss having our magic connected like this in the morning.” Akko confessed quietly into the dark room after a few moments of silence.

“You’re going to miss feeling like the living dead whenever we’re apart for so much as half an hour?” Diana questioned equally quietly, one eyebrow raised incredulously.

“Well, no, but you know what I mean. It feels pretty great whenever we do touch, which is super nice, right? But what I’m really gonna miss is…uh…I guess it’s actually a little bit weird to explain,” Akko started, finding herself feeling a little embarrassed at how sappy her next words would sound, “but it’s…really nice to be able to feel your magic with mine; it makes me feel…safe. Like you’re always with me.” From the heat she could feel in her cheeks Akko knew that she was blushing, but she’d managed to say her piece at least. Diana’s gaze softened as she looked at Akko.

“…I think I’ll miss it too, in all honesty.” Diana admitted, smiling wistfully. “I don’t know if it’s a result of those ‘strong feelings’,” she blushed deeply and glanced away for a second, “you were feeling when we originally cast the spell or something else, but…when I feel your magic with mine, I feel incredibly…_loved._” Diana‘s eyes were gentle and sincere as they span back to meet with Akko’s own, equally gentle, pair.

Akko’s heart skipped way too many beats at those words and the look in Diana’s eyes. Feelings were welling up in her chest at an alarming rate, and there was only one way she knew that would reliably get those across. So, she leaned forward a little with her eyes locked onto the blond’s soft lips, close enough that she could feel the little puffs of Diana’s breath against her own lips. Akko glanced up to meet the other girl’s eyes in obvious question. Instead of answering verbally, Diana instead smiled and moved forward to bring their lips together into a sweet kiss.

_Holy crap,_ Akko couldn’t help but think as her eyes fluttered shut. Kissing Diana always lit fireworks in her heart and gave her an unmatchable rush of happiness, but this time it was so much _more_.

Maybe it was because of their mutually strong feelings in that moment or maybe kissing was just super good at connecting magic, but as their lips met the electricity of their magic intertwining once more was _incredible_, better than ever before. Like Diana had said, the tingling sparks of magic that danced with her own made her feel loved in a way she never had before, as though her heart was connected directly to Diana’s own on a frequency only the two shared. It was overwhelming, but _amazing._

They only parted when they were both nearly out of oxygen, both panting lightly to get their breath back as they stared into each other’s eyes. Akko felt like she was in a haze of mushy feelings and she could see the same was true of Diana, whose eyes were equally foggy and unfocused. “Holy crap.” Akko said out loud. “Holy _crap.__” _She said again. It was all she _could_ say in that moment, with her mind still lost in a fog of bliss and love.

“Holy crap indeed.” Diana echoed breathlessly and if Akko weren’t so out of it she might have stared incredulously at Diana Cavendish _cussing_.

“…I’m _definitely_ gonna miss this.” Akko declared as she hugged Diana even tighter, finally feeling like she could breathe normally again. It earned her a giggle from Diana, which only made the love-drunk haze of her mind grow stronger. There was only one thing she could think of to say in a situation like this. “I love you, Diana.”

Diana’s smile grew happily sappy. “I love you too, Akko.”

Akko replied to that with her own mushy smile. Whether it was from the sheer intensity of the kiss or the day just generally catching up with her, she could feel the beginnings of tiredness spreading through her still hazy mind. As if to emphasise this her mouth gaped in a loud yawn a moment later. Diana mirrored her, pulling a hand back to rub at her eyes tiredly.

“Perhaps we should get some rest now.” Diana suggested, pulling the bed covers up further.

“Mm, probably. ‘M feeling pretty tired after all that homework.” Akko agreed, huddling under the covers. “G’night then, Diana.”

Diana shot her one final small, happy smile. “Good night, Akko.”

Already able to feel her mind slipping into unconsciousness, Akko snuggled closer to Diana and enjoyed the sparking of their combined magic one final time as sleep overtook her.

* * *

When consciousness returned to Akko that following morning, both her and Diana’s magic had returned to normal. Despite not needing to anymore, they still spent dangerously long (and were nearly late leaving as a result) cuddling in bed and enjoying the other’s presence.

Hannah and Barbara were relieved that they were feeling better when they finally made an appearance, but still spent the better part of the morning teasing them relentlessly on their (_Akko__’s_, Diana tried and failed to argue, since everyone there knew she could have stopped it at any time) ‘sneaky’ activities in class the day before. Still, they were genuinely happy to see there weren’t any lingering issues.

Akko was somewhat disappointed when, as they left for breakfast, she reached out to hold Diana’s hand and there was no magical tingle. The spell had well and truly worn off. But then, when Diana smiled lovingly at her and squeezed her hand in return, she felt a different sort of magical tingle in her heart, a different kind of magic that already sparked between them, connecting their hearts together even without the help of a botched Fusion Spell.

With a lovestruck, beaming grin, Akko squeezed Diana’s hand back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I hope you enjoyed this! Next up is my biggest chapter of the bunch and one I really enjoyed writing, so I'm looking forward to getting it out!


	6. Day 6 - Adulthood

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fair warning, this is the behemoth chapter of the bunch. Basically 8.6k words of endless fluff and Akko and Diana being sentimental romantics. This is a heavy dosage of sweetness, so beware cavities!

Luna Nova looked exactly as Diana remembered it, its impeccable architecture framed magnificently by the darkening sky of the evening. Still standing just as proudly and tall as when she’d attended, the grounds and gardens just as beautiful as they’d used to be.

She couldn’t help but marvel at the nostalgic sights around her as she and her equally nostalgic wife made their way hand-in-hand through its halls on their way to the auditorium. Both were dressed warmly for the cold winter’s evening; Akko with her thick and comfy red sweater and jeans, Diana with a white t-shirt and blue jacket combo. She’d opted for more basic black trousers herself. Simple, but effective at keeping them warm.

The reason they were here was because Luna Nova was hosting a ten year reunion for what was undoubtedly its most _interesting_ year of students in history - the Noir Rod event and the revival of Yggdrasil was still noteworthy enough that the news of this reunion and the students that it would involve had reached magical and even mundane news headlines nearly everywhere across the country. To get to meet old friends and current friends alike in such a familiar setting that she had so many fond memories of…Diana had been looking forward to it from the moment it had been announced, just as Akko had.

In fact, they’d both been excited enough that they were _quite_ a bit earlier than they should have been. When they finally made it to the auditorium after much ‘ooh’ing and ‘ah’ing at the memory-filled sights on their way, it was nearly completely empty. A few other students that Diana vaguely recognised from her younger years had already arrived, but before she could even think to go and greet them Akko had already run off towards Ursula and Finnelan, who had been chatting idly before their entrance.

Diana noted the marks of age on them - Finnelan’s hair was greying all over, but it had been kinder to Ursula who hardly looked any different to how she had back when they were students. Both were still garbed in their teachers’ uniform, likely having come to help set everything up and relax immediately after their final lesson.

“Ursulaaa!” Akko called out excitedly, crashing into the older woman with force Diana knew could knock a person off their feet. That force had only grown as Akko herself grew taller and fitter from the workouts that were her shows, but Ursula impressively managed to remain standing. “I haven’t seen you in _forever_! How are you? Is Croix behaving? Has teaching been good? Got any cool students? Nobody as cool as _I_ was, though, right?”

Their old teacher was beginning to look overwhelmed by the rapid-fire questioning, red eyes wide with surprise behind her glasses. Diana, who had followed at a much more sedate pace, smiled and reached out to pull Akko back by her sweater’s collar. “Give her time to breathe, honey.” She scolded lightly. Her wife simply giggled.

“A-Ah, thank you Diana.” Ursula fixed her glasses that had gone wonky on her face from the impact. “We met just a few weeks ago for coffee, didn’t we Akko? It wasn’t _that_ long ago.” She teased.

“Yeah, but a few weeks is _ages_.”

Ursula smiled fondly. “Well, then to answer your questions, I’m doing well thank you. Croix is indeed behaving,” she said with a small chuckle, “and sends her regrets for not being able to come today but she’s busy with...”

While Akko and Ursula caught up with each other, Diana kept one ear on their conversation and turned to Finnelan with a smile. It really was strange, she pondered, that she now needed to look a little down to meet her teacher’s eyes. “Are you doing well?” Diana asked.

Finnelan matched her smile. “Yes, though it can get tiring at times having to deal with so many students. Such little interest in magic before its revival, and now ten years later Luna Nova is finding itself utterly inundated with students.” She shook her head, though her expression was still content. “Not to mention that nearly a full quarter of them idolise one ‘Shooting Star’ and wish only to learn the flashy magic they see your wife use on stage. Goodness, it’s like teaching _multiple_ of Miss Kagari-ah, Mrs Cavendish-Kagari.” Finnelan corrected.

Diana couldn’t help her smile at hearing her wife called as such, nor the laugh that escaped her throat at the idea of having to teach multiple Akkos. No doubt Akko would find great joy in learning that she’d inspired other young witches just as Chariot had her, especially if they’d been causing trouble for their old professor. “My condolences, then. They must be quite a handful, I’m sure.”

“Oh certainly. Though, compared to your year it’s still practically a holiday. No sentient nukes, no plotting teachers and no matter how hard these new children seem to so often try, they’re still nuisances at best compared to your original group.” Finnelan finished with a shake of her head, though there was no heat to her words. If anything, she sounded fond. “But enough about me. I hear you’ve been doing very well as the head of the Cavendish name! The people of Blytonbury and beyond sing your praises for the healing miracles you perform for them.”

“Thank you. I’ve been doing my best to help those who need it, but they surely exaggerate how much I do.” Diana answered. It wasn’t just her being humble - it was the truth. Some of the stories people came up with when all she’d done was heal a scratch or two were ridiculous in their scale, from restoring lost limbs to fixing broken bones in mere seconds. It was flattering, if a little awkward when she had to correct people who praised her in the streets for her latest ‘miracle’.

Both Akko and Diana chatted with their old professors for a while longer, reminiscing and talking about their current affairs in life. Eventually, though, both professors were called off to go and help with some final preparations, so the married pair moved to sit on the edge of one of the empty rows of seats, Diana on the first seat of the row and Akko on her right.

“It’s so weird to be back here. A good kinda weird, though.” Akko began, adjusting the way she was leaning against Diana to find the comfiest position where the ring on her finger wasn’t poking into Diana’s side, “I mean, this is where it all started, y’know?”

Diana nodded, Akko’s hair tickling at her chin as she did so. “I know what you mean. Although,” she began with a playful smile and teasing lilt to her voice, “for _most_ students it began at the school gates. Not in the middle of a forbidden forest or right in the centre of the auditorium with a crash.”

“Hey!” Akko pinched her arm in reprimand. “I think it’s _way_ cooler to have fought off a giant cockatrice and then beam right into the middle of the speech! It’s a stylish entrance! You’re the ones that did it the _lame_ way.”

Diana chuckled and pulled Akko a little closer. “Certainly more memorable, I suppose.” Something caught her eye and she squinted for a moment to get a better look. A grin split across her face as she realised what it was. “Memorable even for Luna Nova itself it seems.” Diana commented, lifting her free hand to point towards the centre of the auditorium where Akko had landed those years ago.

Akko sat up straighter to get a better view, staring for a moment before she gasped in comprehension. “Oh my god, are those scuff marks from when we landed _still_ there?!” She burst into a fit of laughter. “I never realised! Man, that’s amazing!”

Diana could see the figurative lightbulb appear above Akko’s head as her laughter abruptly stopped with another gasp, usually a pretty good indicator that she’d had another one of those _interesting_ ideas of hers. When Akko turned to her with a beaming smile of excitement, Diana mentally braced herself for it. “They should make it a historical relic!”

“A…historical landmark, you mean?” Diana questioned, lost in the endless labyrinth that was Akko’s thought process. After having been married for a few years you’d think she’d have gotten used to her wife’s weird ideas, but Akko was still just as wonderfully incomprehensible as she’d always been. “Of those scuff marks?” She asked, just to make sure she’d heard correctly.

“Oh right, that’s the one! And yeah, I mean,” here she smirked smugly, leaning away for a moment to bring her free hand to her chest, fingertips brushing against the front of her fluffy sweater, “it _marks,__”_ she winked after making that horrible pun and grinned when Diana groaned before continuing, “the time the best witch in history started learning magic after all.”

“Oh? Does it, now? But that can’t be right. I’d have thought that would be the seat over there,” she waved her hand towards a row of seats off to the side, “where the best witch in history watched the _second_ best witch in history’s arrival.” Diana mirrored Akko’s playful smirk.

Akko’s eyes narrowed at the challenge. “So, it’s gonna be like that then, huh? Well that spot’s already reserved as a landmark for when the _prettiest_ witch in history started, so that just wouldn’t work out I’m afraid.”

“Now I _know_ that one can’t be true, because the rightful owner of that title is sat right next to me.” Diana said completely seriously. Both held their serious expressions for a few moments before Akko burst into giggles, Diana’s own tittering following suit.

“It really is nice to be back, flirting where people can’t see in our seats just like back when we were students. It’s nostalgic.” Akko said with a content smile as their laughter died down. She looked around the room, as if drinking in the sight of their old school.

“Indeed.” Diana agreed simply with a nod, doing much the same. Luna Nova was a place she had many, many fond memories of from the beginning of her first year all the way to as a graduating student. Simply by being within its walls once more Diana felt as if she’d been cured of a homesickness that she hadn’t even known she’d had. Hopefully there would be more reunions to come, or other such opportunities to walk within its halls again later in life.

“…Wanna know what else would be nostalgic to do here?” Akko asked, smile growing into something slyer.

From that cute little smirk, Diana had an inkling of what it was. “Oh?” She smirked, leaning forward slightly. “Do tell.”

Akko leaned further into her, rising herself up a little to be eye-to-eye with Diana. “Here,” she began, her head inching ever closer to Diana’s own, “lemme show you instead.” Finally, she closed that last little bit of distance, bringing their lips together in a sweet kiss that even after years of dating and marriage sent Diana’s emotions into a tizzy. Akko was right after all about the nostalgia - it brought back memories of silent giggles and hidden kisses in the middle of the library and classes, all of them worth cherishing.

After about a minute they separated, Akko beaming up at her with an adorable little giggle and Diana unable to keep the gentle smile off her face. Before they could even think to chance another, though, there came the sound of multiple footfalls from somewhere behind them.

“Oh hey, there are the two lovebirds!” Came a familiar voice that Diana immediately recognised as her black-haired friend. Both she and Akko turned quickly, finding not only Hannah and Barbara walking towards them but surprisingly Lotte and Sucy as well. Not that the four weren’t friends, but it seemed they’d all arrived together even though Lotte and Sucy didn’t live anywhere near Hannah and Barbara. How strange.

All of them were dressed simply but warmly, in the same approach the married pair had taken. Except for Sucy, that is, who had never shed the ‘mysterious witch’ robed look she’d adopted in their school time. Diana stood up to greet her friends, happily pulling Barbara into a hug before moving onto Hannah. Off to the side, she could see that Lotte and Sucy had already been met with the Akko Missile.

“Still, you two were already snuggled up together and flirting, huh?” Hannah quipped with a smirk. “Feels appropriate to walk in on you two doing something like that now we’re back, considering how much we used to.” Diana blushed at that, multiple instances of their attempted ‘sneaky’ moments of affection not exactly going so unnoticed. “Some things really do never change.”

“W-Well, it’s only natural.” Diana defended. “We are married after all.”

“Hey, hey,” Hannah started teasingly, “we get it. You love your girl way too much to not get a little bit affectionate. Don’t have to try justify it to us, we’ve seen _more_ than enough proof after all.” Diana’s blush grew a few shades deeper and she sputtered for a moment. Hannah and Barbara both chortled at the sight.

One downside of knowing these two so well was that they knew _her_ well, too - Hannah was always an expert at being able to push the right buttons to fluster Diana. Which, well, considering that was just a big red button labelled ‘AKKO’, it didn’t really mean much.

“But seriously Diana, how are you?” Barbara asked warmly. “I know we only saw each other a few days ago, but I’m well aware Akko can cause an incident in less than even twenty-four hours at this point.” She finished with a laugh. That was…very true. As much as she’d like to defend her wife’s honour, Diana would never forget the terrifying near-miss of their house burning down as a result of Akko’s innocent wish to cook her own pancakes for breakfast.

They spoke for a little while about their lives, Diana griping about some of the more frustrating things she’d had to deal with recently regarding her duties as head of her family and the two of them lending their ears. It was much appreciated since, even though Akko was wonderful and always willing to listen, it was nice to have fresher pairs of ears to speak to about how utterly frustrating it was to hunt down some of the old Cavendish relics Daryl had sold, both because of the money spent and the goose chase it felt like she was on half the time.

Diana couldn’t help but remember how they’d used to do this for her while at Luna Nova as well, always willing to listen to whatever she needed to vent about or give advice. Now and then, she was glad to have such good friends. Of course, she listened to them in return as they spoke of their own affairs, though as with herself not much had happened in the interim between their last catch-up session only a few days ago.

Before they could talk much more, though, Hurricane Akko came barrelling to latch onto the both of them as well, to Hannah’s loud protests and Barbara’s resigned laughter. Diana took the opportunity to go and talk to Lotte and Sucy, the latter looking very relieved to have been released from Akko’s koala hug and the former watching her go with a fond yet pitiful (for Hannah and Barbara most likely) smile.

“Before you ask, we’re fine. Akko already asked enough times for the both of you even though she literally saw us the _day before yesterday_.” Sucy intoned as she approached. Then, alarmingly, she began to smirk. “And we know you’re both fine too, though the ‘fine’ Akko uses when talking about you probably isn’t the traditional one.” She cackled when Diana’s face flushed and Lotte turned to her with mortification written across her face, letting out a disapproving ‘Sucy!’ before turning back to the blond when the mushroom-obsessed girl simply rolled her eyes, satisfied expression not fading in the slightest.

“I-I’m really sorry about her, Diana!” Lotte was quick to say. “But, uhm, yes, we’re all fine.”

“Diana seems more than fine, considering the show we got to see when we came in.” Diana fumbled with her words, unable to say anything as her flush grew even worse.

Lotte span around once more. “S-Sucy! You’re being worse than usual today!”

“What can I say?” She shrugged, shark-toothed sneer growing even further. “Even I’m feeling nostalgic over the fun I had poking fun and seeing those two become red-faced messes.” She lifted a hand lazily to point a limp finger at a wide-eyed Diana, whose head was beginning to look like a ripe tomato. “See? Red-faced mess.”

Cheeks as hot as fire, Diana tried desperately to calm her mind for long enough to string some sort of defence together. Sucy’s grin grew ever-more smug even as Lotte scolded her as the pause went on for longer and longer. Luckily for Diana, a saviour appeared in her time of need.

Hand on her hip and finger pointed accusingly, Akko stood defensively in front of her. “Sucy! Are you bullying Diana again?!” Diana took the time while her wife was serving as a distraction to start composing herself once more. It felt silly to think that she needed to be defended from Sucy’s minor barbs, but Akko was sweet for doing so nonetheless.

“Yeah.” Sucy replied easily. Akko blinked in surprise for a second, flummoxed at how easy it had been. It wasn’t a very heroic look.

“Uh, w-well then! In that case…I…uh, didn’t think this far ahead.” Akko admitted, pulling her hand back to rub the back of her head sheepishly. “I planned out the whole bit where you say ‘no’ and I protest that and stuff but, uhm…not for you outright admitting it.”

“Wow.” Hannah commented dryly from next to Diana. “What a hero.”

“A-Anyway!” Akko forged on, eyes flitting about in a way Diana knew meant she was searching for a change in subject. Here, she stepped in to this time be the saviour.

Coughing into her fist to grab attention, she voiced a question that she’d had since the group had first arrived. “Why did you four arrive together, by the way?”

For some reason, Lotte’s face went up in flames and even _Sucy_ glanced awkwardly away from them. Diana could sense an opportunity for revenge brewing here, if that was anything to go by. Neither of them answered for a few seconds before Barbara stepped in, ignoring the way Lotte frantically waved her hands at her and asked her to ‘please stop no!’.

“Well.” She began with a sly grin. Hannah mirrored it next to her. “Hannah and I were just walking through the halls, minding our own business on our way here, when we came across Lotte and Sucy on a little…’detour’ shall we say?” Barbara turned to Hannah as if for confirmation.

Hannah nodded and picked up from there. “They just seemed so confused, you know? Almost like they thought they’d find the door to the auditorium waiting behind the entrance hall’s big pillars that you can _hardly see behind _that make for great hiding spots for a little _rendezvous_.” She waggled her eyebrows. “So, we stepped in and helped them find the way!”

…Oh. Diana was beginning to understand. She turned back to look at the pair in question, finding Lotte had buried her face in her hands in utter embarrassment and Sucy was attempting to look nonchalant. Attempting, because the slight colour to her grey cheeks betrayed her. Just as Diana’s own button to press was a big red ‘AKKO’ button, she _knew, _even though the girl tried to hide it, that Sucy had her own button with ‘LOTTE’ written in big, bold letters. Revenge was afoot.

“Oh?” Diana began. “What exactly were you two doing there, I wonder?”

“You already know.” Sucy accused grumpily.

It was Diana’s turn to smirk. “Do I? In that case there should be no problem with you telling me, right?”

Sucy looked sorely like she wanted to say something but glanced at the still intensely embarrassed Lotte and held her tongue. Diana could practically _taste_ victory, readying one final verbal blow to finally get one up on the potion-maker. But then just as she made to speak, Akko, her cute and amazing but incredibly dense wife, had to speak up and accidentally throw it all away.

“…I’m confused, what were they doing?” Akko asked innocently. Diana’s palm slowly lifted to rest on her face and Sucy breathed an inaudible sigh of relief. Even after all these years, even after getting _married,_ she was still terrible at picking up on the more subtle nuances of all things romance.

“…Never change, Akko.” Sucy said instead of answering.

“Huh?” She scrunched up her eyes and nose in that adorable ‘thinking face’ of hers before turning back to Diana. “Dianaa, did I miss something really obvious again?”

Diana nodded with a sigh, hand not leaving her face. Even after years of being in a relationship and getting married, her wife could apparently _still_ manage to miss blatant signs of such things. Hannah rolled her eyes, strutted up to Akko and then whispered something in her ear. As the brunette’s eyes went wide, Lotte’s face combusted into a somehow even deeper red, to the point where the healer in Diana was beginning to worry that she might pass out.

They kept up that friendly atmosphere of teasing and chatting like old times for quite a while longer, long enough that the vast majority of other students had arrived and there were only a bare few minutes until Headmistress Holbrooke (who was very much reaping the benefits of a magically-charged life and thus not quite in retirement yet) would give her speech for the reunion. Diana reassured Akko that, no, it wouldn’t take two hours like most of Holbrooke’s speeches.

She didn’t believe her own words, of course, but if she had said as such then Akko might have caused a ruckus.

Just as they were all beginning to worry that something had happened to them, the trio of Amanda, Constanze and Jasminka all showed up - late, because apparently it was ‘more stylish to arrive later’, according to Amanda. Jasminka helpfully let them all know that it was really because Amanda had tripped over a Stanbot and had to make it up to an irate Constanze, which meant they were late getting here. Constanze, at least, looked quite content now.

As the conversation picked up again, this time with the ‘Green Team’ included, Diana couldn’t help but marvel at the sight of all her friends in one big group within Luna Nova just as when they were younger. It really did bring her back to those enjoyable days of her early youth. Although, while she certainly thought of them fondly, she didn’t actively miss them or wish for them back.

Mid-conversation, she reached her right hand out to clasp around Akko’s left, revelling in the happy, beaming smile that was sent her way as a result. As she thumbed the bejewelled ring on Akko’s finger a small, no-doubt sappy and ‘lovey-dovey’ (as Akko would put it), smile spread across her face. No, she didn’t wish to return to those days - the present was far, far too wonderful for that.

Diana was brought out of her inner monologue by the lights dimming slightly and the familiar sound of a throat being cleared loudly, cutting through the chatter of the room. Even ten years later it seemed that all present hadn’t lost their instinct to quieten down the moment Professor Finnelan’s throat was cleared.

As Finnelan stepped to the side, a feebler but still just as kind and motherly Holbrooke appeared, walking up to the podium and readying herself for her speech while everyone moved to find a seat within the rows.

As they settled into their chosen seats, Diana felt a soft weight fall onto her shoulder. A quick glance confirmed that Akko had immediately gone for cuddles again, and Diana didn’t bother to hide her chuckle as she felt an arm slip around her waist. Instead, she wrapped her own arm around Akko’s shoulders and snuggled into her wife more closely.

Truly, she wouldn’t trade this for anything in the world.

* * *

Around an hour and a half later, Diana and Akko were walking through the halls of Luna Nova and reminiscing. It was completely silent save for the sound of their echoing footsteps, the students having likely retired to their dorms for the night.

Headmistress Holbrooke was likely still giving her speech, but Diana had saved them both from the curse of hearing about Luna Nova’s history for the third time with her smart thinking and a quick little invisibility spell. Akko had sung her praises for ‘freeing her from that hell’, rewarding her with enough kisses to leave Diana’s mind happily frazzled and her heart beating like a drum.

Not that they didn’t _want_ to take part in the headmistress’ speech after all these years. It definitely had its charming moments - like when Holbrooke had been talking about how everyone there’s life had no doubt gone through a great many changes such as achieving their dreams, advancing their magical prowess or even more mundane matters, like _marriage _\- she had openly glanced at Akko and Diana as well as a few other couples when she said that and given them a large, motherly smile.

Or when she had gotten a little teary-eyed in her reminiscence over their year and the revival of magic (again, openly glancing with a big smile at their group) and how _proud_ she was. The speech had its charm, most definitely.

That charm was just…harder to appreciate when Luna Nova’s architecture was being explained _yet again_ and they were an hour and a half in with no end in sight.

So, when Akko had quietly complained and asked Diana to save her poor soul before it ‘rotted away from boredom’, Diana had indulged her wife (as well as herself, if she was being honest). Which left them walking through Luna Nova’s halls in the early night, Akko swinging their connected hands as they went. It really was nostalgic, Diana pondered, to have been convinced by Akko to skirt the school rules in order to have time to themselves.

Both when she was a student and a fully-fledged witch, it seemed she could never truly say no to her beloved. Although truthfully, she was also excited to arrive at their destination: The New Moon Tower, where the two had had many a secret rendezvous past curfew. A chance to remember some of the happiest moments of her young life with Akko on that walkway that jutted out of the tower was one she didn’t want to pass up.

It was taking much longer than anticipated to get there, though Diana couldn’t complain - the detours Akko dragged them on for trips down memory lane were more than worth the extra time spent. Already, they’d stopped for multiple other instances of scars that Akko’s mishaps and incidents, such as bricks a little out of place where magical repairs hadn’t been fully efficient, clearly newer paint against the older one where they’d covered damage up, etc.

“Oooh, Diana!” Said brunette rushed forward excitedly on yet another detour, dragging Diana with her. Well used to it this point, Diana didn’t offer any resistance as she was yanked forward. Akko quickly pushed them through what she remembered to be the upper cafeteria door, leading them onto the balcony that overlooked the tables. Akko looked back to her, eyes sparkling with wistful joy as she pointed to a secluded table in the corner. “It’s where we had our first kiss!”

Diana blinked in confusion for a moment before she remembered. Ah, of course. How could she have ever forgotten, if even for a second? Soon after they had gotten together, Akko had decided they would eat up there for once for some privacy together since most of their lunches had devolved into them being teased nigh-endlessly for every little bit of affection they showed each other.

About half-way through their little impromptu lunch-date Akko had suddenly looked incredibly nervous yet determined and, before Diana even knew what was happening, she’d felt a soft, pillow-like pressure on her lips.

She could vividly recall the shock she’d felt, as well as the utter elation that rose up within her. Akko had been apologising profusely at Diana’s shock, thinking that it had been unwanted. Diana had realised that there were more efficient ways out there to stop her at-the-time girlfriend’s tirade and done so immediately.

She could still remember the absolutely surprised but ecstatic look Akko had worn as Diana pulled away. That was also the day she discovered that her wife had a particular weakness to Diana being the one to initiate affection. It was a memory she looked back on with great fondness.

“You were so _cute_ back then, with your pretty blush and surprised face.” Akko spoke with a playfully tilted smile, looking back from the table they’d sat at those years ago to Diana.

Diana mirrored that smile down to the playful little tilt. “Were? Am I not any longer, then? You wound me, dearest.”

The brunette giggled. “Well of _course_ you’re still ridiculously cute, but I’d say you’re even more ridiculously _beautiful_ now, y’know?” Akko said casually, as if she hadn’t just complimented Diana in such a way that made her heart skip a beat.

Before Diana could even think to respond to reciprocate the compliment, she felt a soft, pillow-like pressure on her lips. Once more, just as in the past, elation welled up in her heart as she watched Akko retreat from the quick, chaste kiss, her cheeky smile accompanied by a slight dusting of red on her cheeks.

“Well?” She prompted when Diana remained silent for too long. “How do I compare to past Akko?” Akko asked, playful smile turning into a smug smirk. “Amazing, I bet. I’ve had a lot of practice in knocking those fancy socks of yours off now after all, so-”

As she once had before, Diana realised that there were much more enjoyable and efficient ways to stop her wife’s motormouth, and she moved to do so. When she pulled away after a few seconds, Akko looked adorably surprised but happy, cheeks now splashed red instead of simple dustings. A tried and true tactic of Diana’s to stop the brunette’s babbling, still fully functioning even so many years later.

“How do _I_ compare to past Diana?” Diana purred.

Akko blinked dumbly at her for a few moments. “E-Eh? Ah, uh, p-pretty darn good, I’ll admit. B-But still nowhere _near_ as good as me.” Akko crossed her arms and tried her best to look smug, but the redness in her cheeks had yet to die down and the way she was struggling to meet Diana’s eyes for more than a second betrayed her.

“Is that so?” Diana chuckled. “I suppose I’ve still got much to learn, then.”

Akko uncrossed her arms but kept one hand up to point a thumb into her chest. “Well lucky for you that you’ve got an amazing wife to teach you then.”

“I’ll have to take you up on those lessons soon, then.” The excitement in Akko’s eyes sparkled visibly brighter and she leaned forward, puckering her lips cutely. As much as Diana’s heart pulled her forward, though, there was one slight issue. “It will have to wait until later though, Akko.” She began regretfully, glancing out the window to the darkening sky, “If we take too much longer then the speech will finish, and our absence will no doubt be noted.”

Akko leaned back, rocking on her heels with the momentum as she pouted petulantly. “Why’ve you gotta use logic like that? Spoilsport.” Diana giggled, reaching out to hold Akko’s hand once more.

“We can have that lesson when we return home later, love - I promise.” Diana said with a sly wink. Akko’s face flushed, but she looked giddy at the prospect all the same. With Akko appeased, they left to continue their little trip.

Their next point of reminiscence wasn’t one Akko dragged them to - instead, it was Diana who gasped quietly as a memory rose to the surface. They were outside now, finally nearing the tower while evading the teachers and students on night patrol (which they both had a fair bit of experience in from their younger years). Just as they’d started on the path, though, a specific tree in the gardens had caught Diana’s attention. An old memory rose to the forefront of her mind unbidden, of a bright summer’s day full of laughter and affection.

“Diana?” Akko called confusedly from a little way ahead of her. Knocked out of her stupor, Diana turned back to her wife to find her looking back with concerned eyes and brows knitted in confusion. “Is everything okay? Why’d you stop?”

Diana lifted her free hand to point at the tree that had caught her attention. Akko swivelled her head to follow her finger, her eyes landing on the tree with a gasp. Her expression morphed with delighted excitement. “That tree is-” Diana started almost reverently.

“-the place where we had our first date!” Akko finished with glee. In less than a second Diana was being yanked forward with a surprised yelp yet again over to the tree. She glanced behind them to check that nobody had heard Akko’s rather loud outburst, but luckily there were no signs of any patrolling teachers or students.

By the time they stood under the tree’s low branches (some low enough to be at upper chest height, even - a lot lower than she’d remembered them being) the memories of this place had become even clearer in Diana’s mind. Closing her eyes, she fell into the nostalgia for a few moments.

Akko had surprised Diana with her plans for their first date shortly after they’d first confessed their feelings to each other. A picnic date, she’d declared proudly, with Akko herself cooking and handling all of the food. With the promise of a veritable smorgasbord of her girlfriend’s cooking (which she’d never had, but the concept of the girl she loved making food for Diana specifically to enjoy was enough to get her excited) as well as quality company, the days that followed all ran long as she could only look forward to their date.

Then, the day had come. Diana could hardly keep herself composed under the force of her own nerves and eagerness throughout the entire day, much to the amusement of Hannah and Barbara. Akko had been much the same, constantly gushing about how _amazing_ it was gonna be and how she’d done everything perfectly. Finally, after a day that felt far too long, it was time.

Akko really had gone all out, she recalled fondly. A large picnic blanket and a wide assortment of different treats - from mini sandwiches to little cakes and biscuits (though she admitted the cakes were bought because she’d struggled with those and been banned from making them for fear of burning the school down, but the biscuits were all from scratch), it had been stellar.

But of course it wouldn’t be a date with Akko without _something_, and Diana found that little something when she took the first bite of Akko’s ‘Luna-Nova-kitchen-but-sorta-homemade’, in her own words, biscuits, and instead of sugary sweetness there came the overwhelming taste of salt. Across from her, Akko had eagerly bitten into her own biscuit and frozen solid along with Diana.

Though Akko had been incredibly apologetic and embarrassed as they desperately washed the taste down with the tea and juice she’d packed, it was still a memory Diana held in a very soft spot of her heart - where the vast majority of her memories of Akko resided, truthfully. It helped that she’d managed to salvage the situation with Bouden Dariard to alter the taste as well. It was a memory they could both look back on happily and fondly laugh at now - and chuckle Diana did, as she remembered it all.

A soft ‘thwump’ brought her back to reality. She looked down to find that her wife had plopped herself down on the cold grass under the tree in the same position she’d sat across from Diana those many years ago. It was a cute sight, but there was one issue that had her eye twitching in irritation.

“Akko, your trousers will have grass stains all over them if you sit down there - need I remind you that we’re meant to be going back inside before the end of the speech _without_ being found out?” Diana spoke sternly, hands resting on her hips disapprovingly. “Green stains aren’t exactly incognito, nor are they going to be easy to clean when we get back home.”

“Aw c’mon Diana, it’s fun! I just wanted to see what it felt like to sit in this spot again.” Akko reasoned. Then the brunette beamed up at her with that big smile she _knew_ Diana couldn’t refuse and leaned forward to pat the grass in front of her - around where Diana had sat during the date. “You should join me!”

She knew she shouldn’t - they likely wouldn’t get into any real trouble even if they were found out, but the teasing would be relentless and the stains invincible. Those arguments felt feeble, however, when faced with the sheer sunshine of her wife’s smile.

In the end, all she could do was sigh resignedly and sit across from Akko. Said girl’s resulting cheer of joy and the way her sunshine smile amplified was enough to put a smile on her own face, even though she could _feel_ the stains already forming on her own trousers. By Jennifer, she was _weak_.

“Now it really is like back then!” Akko exclaimed happily, hands acting as support pillars on the grass as she leaned back in relaxation, legs both out in front of her. “Though, uh, without the food. Obviously.”

“Obviously.” Diana echoed amusedly. Now that she was sitting down, the size difference of the tree in her memories and the one sitting next to her were far easier to place. “…It’s strange, isn’t it?”

“Hm? What is?” Akko tilted her head in question.

“How much…smaller everything seems here.” She looked around. “The doors, the rooms, even this tree - it’s not by much, but it’s strange how a little discrepancy in height can change so many things. I remember this tree being quite a bit taller - though,” Diana chuckled lightly, “that could also be my memory failing me, I suppose.”

“Maybe you’re getting a little forgetful in your old age?” Akko quipped with a teasing smirk.

Diana shot her a flat look. “Akko, we are the _same age_.”

“Nuh-uh, you’re like two months older!” Akko protested with a childish pout.

“And that’s enough, is it?” Though she tried to sound stern, the mirth she was feeling inevitably bled into her tone.

Akko shrugged her shoulders. “I mean clearly, if you’re forgetting how big a tree is already.” After a moment her expression grew less playful and more wistful as she looked up at the tree. “…But yeah, I get what you mean. It’s not much, but it’s enough that everything just feels…different.” Diana hummed in agreement, looking up as well. They stayed that way for a little while, both mutually lost in their happy memories of this place.

Spurred on by the happiness of those memories, an idea came to Diana. “Perhaps we could have another picnic date soon. The park near that sweet shop you like has quite a few nice areas, no?” She suggested.

Immediately, Akko shot up from her relaxed position with eager excitement shimmering in her eyes. “Ooh, that’d be amazing! What about that spot by the lake? We could bring some bread to feed the ducks!” She gasped as another idea came to her, carrying on before Diana could even so much as nod. “We could make the food together! Would you wanna do that?! It’d be so much fun!” Those maroon eyes pleaded with her to say yes.

Though it had been Diana’s idea originally, it seemed Akko had already commandeered it for herself in her exhilaration. Well, she was more than glad to let her wife take the reigns - no doubt it would be incredibly enjoyable, as all things with Akko were. And the prospect of preparing the food together was certainly appealing. So, with a fond smile, Diana answered. “Well, I suppose _somebody_ has to make sure you remember the difference between salt and sugar this time.”

“Yay!” Akko cheered cutely, raising her arms up in a cheer. Then she brought them down, expression changing in an instant to narrowed eyes and flat lips. “Also _rude.__”_ A second later she was all smiles and cheers again. “But mostly yay!”

Diana smiled at Akko’s happiness. “For now, though,” She started as she stood up, brushing at the stains that had already formed on the back of her trousers with a grimace, “we need to get going if we want to get to the top of the tower with enough time to return before our absence is noted.” Having done what she could for the stains, she lent a hand to Akko to help her stand up. Naturally, when they were both back to standing, neither let go.

As they made their way across the final stretch of path before The New Moon Tower, they began talking in more detail about the date plans, such as location, date and time and whatnot. It was adorable how excited Akko had gotten over the idea as she ran through hundreds of different ideas for food, drinks and even the colour patterns of the picnic blanket within minutes, though Diana couldn’t deny her own burgeoning anticipation either.

By the time they’d reached the top and arrived at the all-too-familiar balcony, their plans were set for the coming weekend and they were both suitably excited.

Now, they sat closely side-by-side on the edge of the long balcony. Diana cross-legged and a safe distance from the edge while Akko recklessly swung her legs off the edge without a care in the world. Diana kept a hand clutching the back of the brunette’s sweater just in-case - there had been many a near call in the past with Akko sat like that where she’d nearly fallen off in her excitement over things, and she wouldn’t chance another.

There were so many memories of this place that they held together - secret rendezvouses in the night, as a nice private area to go to even during the day, but the memory that stood out most to Diana had to be, of course, when she had been stood before a crossroads where she was forced to choose between her duty to her family name and her dreams.

And then Akko, sweet and lovable and utterly amazing Akko, had shown her the path to have both. Had stolen Diana’s heart in the process as well, for which she would be eternally grateful - she doubted she could have ever been this happy with anyone else.

And then she’d done so much more. Being a friend to Diana, someone that reminded her that it was okay to dream, okay to have fun and simply enjoy magic without regard for reputation or duty. Someone that reminded her of what it was like to be that child again, sitting in the audience of Shiny Chariot’s show and simply being happy. Reminded her of what her mother had wanted for her all along.

By Jennifer, she was lucky to have found Akko. Thinking on it was enough to put beads of tears in her eyes and make Diana a sappy, lovestruck and sentimental mess.

And like the sappy, lovestruck and sentimental mess that she was, she couldn’t help but speak her mind as she stared lovingly into her wife’s eyes. “I love you, Akko.” Diana spoke softly and sincerely, squeezing her wife’s hand. Akko’s eyes widened as her cheeks flushed. “And I’m eternally grateful for everything you did for me back then, as well as for all the things you do now. Coming after me and refusing to give up even when I and everyone else told you not to. Saving me from Daryl’s plot even at the risk of being cursed and always sticking by me after that.”

Diana paused for a moment, dabbing at the pinprick tears in her eyes before carrying on. “Even for the little things, like the way you message me with those sweet little pick-me-up texts during stressful days or simply lending an ear to my troubles. I don’t feel like I say it enough, though I doubt I ever _could_ say it enough. But…thank you.” Diana smiled shakily at her beautiful, amazing wife as she finished. “Thank you for loving me and bringing joy to my life.”

Akko looked like she might cry. Scratch that, she _was_ crying. Her lips parted as if to say something, but all that came out was a whimper-sob as she launched to wrap her arms around Diana in a deathly squeeze, burying her head in the blond’s now rapidly dampening shoulder. This…hadn’t been Diana’s intention.

Starting to worry that she’d somehow misspoken somewhere and upset Akko, she went back through the impromptu speech in her head as she rubbed soothing circles onto the other woman’s back. Before she could locate the issue, though, Akko pulled back to look at Diana with tears still making tracks down her cheeks.

“W-What the hell!” Akko half-spoke half-sobbed. “Y-You can’t just spring that on me out of nowhere! My heart wasn’t prepared at _all!_ This is your proposal all over again! Why do you have to be so s-stupidly _sweet?!_” It seemed she was finally calming down a little as Akko wiped at her eyes, sniffling every few seconds. Was Akko…mad that she’d sprung it out of nowhere then? Should Diana apologise, perhaps?

“I, uhm, apolog-” Was about all she could flounder through before Akko cut in.

“Oh, no no no! None of that! You don’t just get to say one of the sweetest, most lovely things I’ve ever heard you say and then just bail on it!” Akko shouted sternly - or at least tried to. The reddened eyes and occasional sniffles weren’t very conducive to intimidation. “You’ve at least gotta let me have _my_ turn!”

With a final big sniffle and a few last wipes at her eyes, the brunette leaned back out of the hug and visibly steeled herself, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes for a few seconds. When she opened them again, she still looked to be on the verge of tears, but there was a steely determination there now.

“I love you too, Diana.” Akko began seriously, voice still a bit shaky but holding true. “And _I__’m_ the one that should be thanking _you_ for all those things. You don’t need to thank me or anything because you already do it in all the ways that matter - like when we were students and you’d help me pick myself back up again whenever I doubted myself or failed. You never once gave up on me either, y’know?” Her voice was growing shakier and shakier with each word, but she forged on regardless.

“And even now, whenever a show doesn’t go as well as I was hoping or when I get worried about whether I’ll be good enough, you’re still there to help me pick myself back up again and find my footing. Also, you do those little things too, don’t forget. Like sitting forefront and centre in the audience for each show just to remind me that you’re there, or making me breakfast in bed when I’m tired and want to sleep in and…and…oh heck I’m gonna cry again.”

True to her word, tears began to trail down from her eyes. Even so, she managed to smile a wobbly little smile full of love at Diana. Diana could feel as emotional tears began to fall from her own eyes as well. As Akko fanned herself with her hands to regain some composure, Diana pulled her back into a comforting hug. It seemed to do the trick, and once her wife had calmed down again, she picked up where she’d left off.

“And yeah. I’m the one that should be thanking you, Diana. For loving me and believing in me all these years. Because you’ve given me _more_ than enough thanks in the happiness you’ve given me back. The day you proposed, and the day of our marriage are both still the happiest days of my life. So… yeah.” Akko lifted her head out of where it had been burrowed into Diana’s chest to meet her eyes. “I love you so, so so so much.”

Diana’s heart and mind were _melting_ under the sheer intensity of the solar flare of love and affection that was rocking through her body right now. There was only one thing that they could both still function enough to agree on, and that was that she should _very much be kissing her wife right now._ So, she did exactly that. Diana moved her head forward as her eyes slowly closed to bring her lips against Akko’s, who eagerly reciprocated and wrapped her arms around her neck.

Charged by the emotion within the kiss, Diana felt as if the dark sky that surrounded them had been suddenly lit up with fireworks and as though their explosions had deafened her to all but the thumping of her heart in her ears.

They didn’t separate until they were mutually on the verge of running out of oxygen, as they both desperately needed to get across the overwhelming emotions in their hearts. For that, once wasn’t enough. They went in again, and then again after that in a series of chaste kisses that left Diana’s mind foggy and her heart a soft ball of mush.

When the feelings within her chest had finally calmed down enough, they pulled back one final time and simply stared into each other’s eyes as they regained their breath. Their tears had dried up and they were smiling sincere and tender little smiles at one another.

Wordlessly, Akko shifted herself so she was facing off the balcony again - this time further back, so she could move to lean into Diana. Diana rested her own head on Akko’s, scooting in further so that they were as closely connected as possible. Without saying anything, they revelled in the emotions and memories they’d relived tonight, thinking on the ways that things had changed with adulthood. They’d already said all they needed to tonight anyway.

If they didn’t get back soon, then the speech would end and they’d be found out. They’d likely be teased relentlessly by their friends and receive a scolding from Finnelan and the other teachers over their actions.

…In that moment though, sat underneath the spreading stars in the sky with the girl she loved most in the world, Diana couldn’t bring herself to care. Besides, she thought with a little uptick of her lips.

It’d be nostalgic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thank you all so much for reading! Next one up is the final one!


	7. Day 7 - Free Day (Compliments)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One final dosage of cuteness, sweetness and wholesome fun. Hope you all enjoy!

Diana was amazing.

No matter how many days Akko woke up with her beloved, beautiful wife next to her, she would never get tired of having those blond-green locks be the first thing she saw, or the way Diana looked with bed-head and sleepy love in her eyes whenever she gazed at Akko after waking up. Nor would she ever grow tired of how impossibly beautiful she looked at basically any point of any day, or the way she would support Akko through anything and everything she did. Diana was just incredible, and Akko felt blessed to have her in her life.

There was just…one itsy-bitsy issue with all that perfection.

Which was that whenever Akko tried to compliment Diana or tell her exactly how amazing she was, her wife would always turn it back around and leave _Akko_ the flustered mess instead. It had been going on for way too long at this point; ever since Diana had seemingly learnt how to stop herself from becoming a blushing mess at compliments, unlike Akko who was still very much struggling. For years she had struggled against the menace that was the blond’s unfairly sweet and sincere replies to her compliments, and for years she had failed.

But no more! Atsuko Kagari didn’t just give up! She wouldn’t stop until she managed to find the perfect compliment and the perfect timing, and then through those she would make her wife blush adorably! And so, with fiery determination burning in her heart, Akko began plotting her plan of attack.

* * *

Her first chance arose when she and Diana were cuddled up and relaxing on the sofa on a lazy weekend day, Diana reading a new book while Akko lay across the rest of the sofa with her head in the other woman’s lap as she watched TV. As Diana’s hand stroked across Akko’s hair with gentle affection, the brunette was deep in scheming thoughts.

Now was the perfect opportunity - the atmosphere was nice and chill, and they’d been sitting in companionable silence for a few minutes now, so Diana wouldn’t see Akko’s masterfully planned out compliment coming at all. Thus, she’d be caught off-guard and rendered a blushing mess with _ease_.

And not just that - Akko had come up with another side to the plan as well; she’d compliment something unique to Diana that she couldn’t simply rebound back onto Akko! Honestly, she amazed herself with her own genius sometimes. Doing her best to keep down her increasingly mischievous smirk, she rolled her head back to look up at Diana.

“Hey, Diana?” Akko started as innocently as she could. Diana looked down at her in question with a soft smile that sent her heart a-fluttering, shifting her book to the side so it wasn’t blocking Akko’s face. “Do you think your hair is blond and green because they’re like the colours of light and life?”

Diana raised an eyebrow, smile growing amusedly curious, and Akko reached up to gently play with blond-green locks before she continued. “Y’know, sunshine and plants?” Then, as casually as she could, she sprung her trap. “I think that has to be the case, what with you being the_ light_ of my _life _and all.”

_Checkmate_. Akko didn’t have two fancy colours in her hair, and she’d made it specific about the colours themselves just in-case. Triumph swelled within her chest, and she re-focused on Diana to fully bask in the no-doubt wide-eyed and blushing face her wife had.

Except, uh…she didn’t.

“You’re too sweet.” Diana chuckled with a pleased smile as she marked her page and set her book down onto the sofa’s armrest, _still not flustered how_. “Though if that’s the case,” she began softly, leaning down and pressing a quick, chaste kiss to Akko’s lips before pulling away to gaze tenderly down at her, “then perhaps _your_ hair is an earthen brown because you’re my world.”

…that was just _unfair_. The cheesy reply that had Akko’s heart squeezing affectionately was bad enough, but the _kiss as well?!_ Even though she’d done _everything_ right, she was the one left a sputtering mess _yet again,_ while Diana was free to shoot her a victorious smile and pick up her book once more as if nothing had happened. When Akko’s mind finally rebooted, she vowed to repay this debt _twofold_ the next time an opportunity came up.

Plan A had ended in failure, but it wasn’t over yet!

* * *

Alright, so plan A didn’t work out but that was fine. Plan B was even _better_ \- B for Better, in fact!

A bright summer’s day found Akko and Diana sitting at a large table in a cosy cafe with all their old friends for their bi-weekly catch-up and general chatting session. Naturally, the married pair were sat next to each other with Akko cuddled into Diana’s left side as they held hands.

As they all chatted between themselves about their lives and recent adventures and whatnot, Akko was only half-listening, with the other half of her attention focused solely on her plan.

An idea had struck her as she looked around the crowded cafe, a compliment she was certain would knock Diana’s socks right off. She’d been nearly bursting at the seams with the effort required to hold it in and wait for a lull in the conversation to unleash it, foot tap-a-tapping madly under the table in excitement.

Akko was _certain_ this one would work - not only was it a genius compliment, but it was in public as well. Diana had always been weaker to public affection, so it was a perfect double whammy that would ensure her success.

After a few minutes more of waiting, the time finally came. As Amanda finished regaling them all with the most recent tale of her exploits in the recent broom race she’d participated in, there was a moment of quiet.

And in that moment of quiet, Akko looked to Diana with a happy grin, nudging her lightly to grab her attention. When those sapphires focused onto her, she made her move.

“Diana, how do you do it?” Akko asked, doing her best to push down a cheeky smile.

Diana blinked confusedly at her. “Do…what?”

And with that, Akko’s trap had been triggered. Grin growing, she moved in for the kill. “How is it that even with so many people around, your beauty still manages to outshine them all?”

Sucy groaned with immense agony, smacking her palm into her face while Lotte gasped quietly at the ‘romantic’ comment. Amanda barked out loud peals of laughter as Constanze and Jasminka shared a look and a little smile at the flirting, well used to it at this point. Hannah and Barbara merely smiled and rolled their eyes in perfect unison.

Yet, the one person that should have had the best reaction simply stared at her in surprise before a smooth, charming smile that spelt nothing but danger for Akko spread across her face. Then, completely unaffected, Diana calmly reached out for her mug of tea and lifted it before replying at last. “You must be blinded by your own radiance, darling, because I’m certainly not the one shining most brightly here.”

“Oh my god that’s so ridiculously cheesy-” Amanda cut off, wheezing laughter growing even more uncontrollable when Akko froze up like a statue and her face went up in flames, “-and _of course it__’s worked on Akko._”

As Amanda got caught up in her fit of laughter, Sucy was the one that made the final comment. “You’re both love-drunk idiots.” She declared dryly. Akko, meanwhile, couldn’t hear any of it, too busy trying to deal with her brain’s internal meltdown. Diana merely lifted the tea the rest of the way to her still-smiling lips and took a dainty sip.

Needless to say, Plan B ended in failure.

* * *

Okay, Diana’s ability to always turn Akko’s comments around was better than she’d thought, but Akko wasn’t out yet! She still had plan C! Except, uh…plan C wasn’t a plan at all. It had just _happened,_ without any planning. So more of an ‘opportunity C’ really, she supposed.

It came about when Akko had woken up earlier for once one morning and was treated to the sight of a peacefully sleeping Diana who was clinging tightly onto Akko even in her sleep. It was a rare treat, so she indulged in it as much as she could before her wife began to stir awake.

Even sweeter of a treat, though, was Diana’s smile she gave to Akko as she woke up; drowsy, joyful and loving. No matter how many years went by, that smile would always pierce straight to Akko’s heart and leave it a pile of sappy mush. In the moment, she decided Diana should know that.

“Your sleepy little smile when you wake up is _beyond_ adorable, you know that?” Akko complimented lightly with a grin of her own.

The smile in question grew at that and Diana cuddled in more closely. When she spoke, her voice was both sincere and raspy with sleep. “It must be because I have something to look forward to waking up to.”

Oh, that was _so not fair_. Not even an hour had passed in the day and already Akko had been rendered a red-faced, lovestruck mess by a _half-asleep Diana_. While her mind tried its best to reboot, Diana giggled softly and leaned in for a short kiss before getting up from their bed. She said something about ‘making morning tea for when you’re back in the land of the living’ as she left, but Akko barely heard it.

Plan C was over before it had even begun.

* * *

Akko followed behind Diana through the supermarket isles, looking out for any interesting food treats or other fun-looking things to try that she could convince Diana (and bring out her puppy-dog eyes if needed) to add to their weekly food shop. Though, since they were currently in the fruit and veggies isle, that wasn’t looking very likely.

However, looking around at the different food items, Akko found another incredible plan brewing in her mind, one that relied on a new tactic to try and breach her wife’s impeccable defences. While Diana paused to look over some assorted fruit thoughtfully, Akko moved into action. Grinning widely, she called out to catch her wife’s attention as she picked up the necessary item.

“Diana, don’t you think we make a great…_pear?_” She asked, grin growing with each word and barely keeping down her giggles. Of course, a pear that she’d nabbed from its place in the fruit boxes sat in her hands.

This was her newest tactic; _humour_. If flat compliments weren’t doing it, then she’d use the classic master-technique of bringing smiles to faces through jokes to claim her victory. Diana’s face twisted into a mix of amusement and exasperation in response to Akko’s amazing pun, but the brunette wasn’t done yet.

Putting down the pear, she grabbed an apple next. “You’re the _apple_ of my eye!” She quickly put that down as well, scanning the boxes for anything else that might work. In hindsight, maybe she should have planned ahead a bit more. “You’re…uh…aha!” Akko nabbed a box of grapes, holding them up for Diana to see. “You’re pretty darn _grape!_” That one had sounded better in her head. It was still good, though!

Except Diana didn’t look like she was feeling particularly affected, instead having moved from exasperated amusement to pure amusement at Akko’s antics with a humoured smile on her face. There was affection in those eyes, but no blush like Akko had been hoping. Even though making Diana look happy like that was a pretty good result anyway, she wondered what more it would take to achieve her goal. Maybe a few more puns might do the trick?

But then, Diana’s smile ticked up at one side into something more playful and she turned back to the boxes, picking a container of strawberries up. As she lifted them, she met Akko’s eyes and spoke with a lightly playful tone. “You’re simply too _sweet_, dear.” While not as direct as Akko, the intent was clear enough for her to understand what Diana was doing. If it hadn’t been clear enough, though, her next comments made it crystal. “_Berry_ sweet indeed, saying such kind things about me. You truly are ek-_straw_-dinary.” Diana joked as her smile grew wider.

Akko gaped at her, both stupidly charmed by her usually prim and proper wife making her own silly puns while also incredibly miffed because _why_ did Diana have to somehow manage to rebound even _puns?!_ Was there anything she couldn’t deflect back?!

As Diana put the strawberries into the basket, Akko’s gape transformed into a petulant pout, glaring at her wife with her arms crossed. “Is there anything you can’t respond to perfectly?” Akko asked grumpily, half-joking and half-genuinely wondering at this point. “It’s getting ridiculous how good you are at it!”

“Well you don’t just expect me to leave my lovely wife un-complimented when she’s being so sweet to me, do you?” Diana answered way too sincerely for Akko’s poor heart. She couldn’t stop the blush that crept across her face, nor her hastened heartbeat.

Akko threw her hands up incredulously. “Now you’re even using my _complaints_ as opportunities to be ridiculously cute!”

Diana simply chuckled in the face of Akko’s ire. “I’m sorry, love. How about I make it up to you?”

Akko’s pout dimmed as she looked to Diana curiously. “…I’m listening.”

“I do believe that the baking section here has a particularly tasty blueberry tart, no? One I remember you rating an ‘11 out of 10, easy’. Would that be enough to earn your forgiveness?”

Akko’s pout was gone in an instant, replaced by excited, sparkling eyes and a massive grin in less than a second. “Really?! What are we waiting for, then?! Let’s _go!__”_

Grabbing Diana’s free hand, Akko dragged her away from the boringly healthy isle and towards sweet pastry goodness. The blond half-heartedly protested something about not being done yet, but eventually just gave in to the force of nature that was Atsuko Kagari on a mission for tarts - not even Luna Nova had been able to stop this menace from her night raids, so what hope did she have?

Humour hadn’t worked out as intended in the end, but Akko had gotten to see Diana make puns as well as a pretty darn good tart, so she supposed she could let this one go. Next time for _sure_, though!

* * *

Even though she’d been excited for another attempt, Akko was honestly nearly out of ideas at this point. But there was still one last trick up her sleeve, one last method she had left to get her wife blushing. 

This time, Akko was being even more sneaky than usual, sneaky enough that she was certain Diana wouldn’t see it coming this time. In fact, even _she_ wouldn’t technically see it coming it was so sneaky! As in she wouldn’t be there for it, not that she’d somehow sneak it past even herself, because that’d be silly.

Akko was relaxing on the sofa in their home while Diana was out for work. That meant the blond wasn’t even here for Akko to compliment, but that was all part of the plan for this one. Today she’d specially made and packed her wife’s lunch with everything she liked most - a travel mug full of her favourite tea brewed to perfection and some of her favourite treats, all topped off with a Bouden Dariard to make them even better than normal.

But that wasn’t the main event of Akko’s plan, oh no. That honour fell to the little note she’d slipped in for Diana to find later.

It had been difficult, but Akko had eventually managed to get the special enchantment working, which meant that when Diana folded that little note open, not _only_ would she hear Akko saying each word of her love note as she read it, but there were even little sparks of magic that would fly out of it and leave the sensation of Akko’s kisses on her cheeks!

That, combined with the cute words she’d filled the note with, would guarantee her success for _sure._ Although, uh…she wouldn’t get to see it. But victory was victory, regardless of seeing it or not! And she’d added a footnote on it to tell Diana to text her ASAP once she’d read it so Akko could still have her victory through text anyway.

With a satisfied smile, she leaned back further into the sofa and waited for Diana to message her with news of Akko’s success. Except, even after over half an hour of waiting, her phone remained silent.

…Was Diana having issues with her phone again? It had taken months on end to help her wife understand how modern technology like her iPhone worked, but she could still be a little shaky about using it and tended to avoid it as much as she could. Maybe Akko should text first and check?

Just as she was reaching to grab her own phone from its place on the coffee table in front of the sofa, there came a sudden tapping at one of the living room windows to her side that made Akko ‘eep’ in startled fear. Spinning towards the noise, she grabbed her wand and brandished it threateningly forwards in one hand to find…a little origami swan, animated by magic, was pecking at the window. Akko blinked confusedly at it.

Was it…a letter or something? Weird way to send it, but it could be important if it was done through fancy magic like that. Now that its identity was revealed to be something that was _probably _safe, she walked up to the window, unlatched it and then pulled it open for the still-pecking swan. It launched forwards immediately, and Akko shrieked in surprise again, eyes instinctively shutting in preparation for an onslaught of paper-cut pecks.

But, instead of pecking at her, it simply flapped in front of her face as though it was waiting for something. Hesitant and still very much confused, Akko lifted a hand up experimentally, and the swan dove to land on it. It went still before unfolding itself and refolding itself repeatedly until it was just a half-folded piece of paper.

Huh. Neat.

Was Akko meant to…open it now? It _probably_ wouldn’t explode or anything and make their insurance company hate Akko more than they already did, right? Just in-case, though, she stretched her arms out as far as they could go and carefully opened it with one eye shut.

When no magical sparks or explosions came, she peeled open both eyes to look at the now unfolded note. She was given another spook when little motes of green flew out at her face, and before she could even think to stop them, they’d already reached her. Akko clamped both of her eyes shut and braced for the worst.

Instead of pain, though, she instead felt soft and pillow-like sensations spread across her skin where each landed. The feeling was extremely familiar, one that had her heart thump-a-thumping even though she couldn’t immediately place it. What came next, though, was unmistakable.

“Akko,” Diana’s voice sounded out, soft, happy and sincerely full of love, and all Akko could think was _oh no don__’t do this to me not again,_ “thank you very much for the note - you really are too sweet.” A melodic giggle rang out, one that spelt utter doom for Akko’s plans once more. “Though I’m not quite certain what you meant when you described my eyes as ‘bluer than the best blue’, I appreciate all of your cute compliments nonetheless.”

Wait, what? She’d spent _ages_ thinking up that one! Her thoughts were interrupted as Diana’s voice continued. “Naturally I can’t leave such sweetness unanswered, even though I know you wish to ‘win’ for once.” Her tone was amused and affectionate and every one of Akko’s danger instincts flared wildly as her downfall rapidly approached.

“Wait-no! Have mercy, Diana!” Akko protested loudly, forgetting momentarily that this was pre-recorded.

“I would say that your eyes are redder than the best red, but that feels inadequate when I remember the unique sparkle of soul and passion that makes them far prettier than any mundane red could ever hope to be.” Akko’s heart _squeezed_ and her face flushed red because of _course_ Diana was able to take her own compliments and make them better with ease. Oh, she was so done for. “Though of course, if I were to compliment you, I would first say…”

The magical recording went on for a fair while longer as Diana made every compliment Akko herself had written even better as well as making her own that left Akko a mess of emotions. By the time the speech-length letter had finished, her poor, weak heart was on the verge of bursting and she’d crouched down into a ball, face as hot as fire as it rested in the palms of her hands. The note lay abandoned on the floor in front of her.

Diana wasn’t even _here _and she’d managed to defeat Akko. Not just that - even her magic had been outdone, since if that origami bird had come here so soon after noon, then Diana had to have done it in like twenty minutes.

It was Akko’s complete loss, but she couldn’t find it in her heart to be frustrated this time, busy as she was being ridiculously charmed by that note and infatuated with her amazing wife. In hindsight, she was never going to win. Diana was simply too perfect, and Akko’s heart was simply too weak to that perfection.

* * *

Again, Akko and Diana were relaxing on the sofa together, but this time Akko was nestled into her wife’s side rather than laying her head on her lap. It was incredibly similar to how they’d been only a few days ago with Diana reading and Akko watching TV, except there were no grand plans, no schemes or anything - she had resigned herself to simply enjoying having such a romantic wife and given up in the face of Diana’s ability.

Not that she’d ever actually stop complimenting Diana, but it was clear that the blond was far too strong to defeat in that area. The note she’d received earlier in the day had cemented that fact into her mind _quite_ clearly. Even now, hours later, remembering it was enough to send a thrill through her heart and dust her cheeks with red.

“I still can’t believe how ridiculously good at compliments you are.” Akko whined. “Is there _anything_ you aren’t good at?”

Diana chuckled amusedly from her right. “Well, it helps that there’s a lot to compliment about you - it certainly makes it simpler for me.”

Red blooming across her face, Akko pulled back and shot Diana a peevish glare. “There you go again!” The glare dropped and she sighed, falling back into the blond’s side again with a soft ‘whump’. “To think I’d be foiled just because I love my wife way too much.” Akko lamented with a sigh. Just as she said that, though, a tiny squeak came from her right. Akko quickly pulled away and stared wide-eyed at the source of the noise - Diana. Had she just…?

“…Diana, was that what I think it was?”

Diana cleared her throat, hiding her face behind the large pages of her book and out of Akko’s vision. “W-What? I didn’t hear anything, Akko.” It was a blatant lie, told in the way her voice had gone higher pitched and how she’d yet to take her face out of its hiding place.

_No way._ Akko shot up, getting onto her knees and peeking over the book before Diana could think to stop her. There, in all its glory, was a flustered Diana with a pretty flush across her cheeks. “What.” Was all Akko could say, shocked as she was. Then, indignation kicked in. “_That__’s_ what got you flustered?! All that work, and all it ended up taking was an off-hand comment about how I love you?!”

Even saying it that way seemed to do the trick as the blond’s blush deepened. After a few moments of silence wherein Akko gaped at her wife incredulously, internally struggling with whether she should feel annoyed or smugly victorious, Diana finally spoke up.“I-It was just very sincere, the way you said it so casually. I wasn’t expecting it.” She admitted, pausing for a second before continuing, her voice a little quieter. “And, w-well…technically, this wasn’t your first victory.”

Akko stared dumbly at her. “…Huh?” Finally, she finished processing the comment, shooting forward right into Diana’s personal bubble in her incredulity. “Wait, what?! But nothing else worked!”

“Nothing else worked in front of you.” Diana corrected gently, looking embarrassed. “That note you left me in the lunch you made today had…more of an effect than I let on in my return message today.”

Akko gasped and pinched Diana’s arm. “You sneak! Why did you hide it?!”

“W-Well…” Diana trailed off, gaze moving off to one of the room’s walls. “I thought that if I let you know you’d ‘won’ then you might stop with the compliments and such.” Those blue eyes moved back to Akko’s and Diana wore a preciously bashful smile. “I was honestly enjoying it quite a lot, getting to hear such cute and kind things from you and being able to return them myself.”

Now it was Akko’s turn to blush as her heart skipped a fair few beats. “What the heck?! That’s the _cutest thing I__’ve ever heard!_ Of course I wouldn’t stop!” She reassured Diana, wrapping her arms around the blond’s midsection in a hug. “After all, there’s loads left to compliment about you that I haven’t even started on! Not to mention,” she smirked slyly, “that now I know your _weakness._”

Diana stared confusedly at her for a moment before her eyes widened in realisation and panic. Akko’s smugness only grew at the sight of it - the tables truly had turned now.

“I love you, Diana.” She spoke with the most sincerity and genuine emotion she could, staring straight into Diana’s eyes. Her wife’s face went an even brighter shade of red and her lips quivered. Akko’s smirk grew wider. “My love for you is endless,” she continued in a purr, reaching a hand to cup Diana’s cheek, “you’re the one I love most. You’re the love of my life.” With each new sentence the blond squeaked and only grew redder, so Akko remained relentless in her affectionate assault.

It was just too cute. All along Diana had actually been enjoying it along with Akko, and she’d decided to hide it when Akko had won simply because she was having too much fun with it and didn’t want it to end? Honestly, Diana was just _too precious_. And the tippy top of the cute iceberg had to be the redness colouring the blond’s cheeks and the little pleased noises she made at just being told that Akko loved her.

In hindsight, it should have been obvious really - Diana’s reactions at Akko saying she loved her hadn’t ever faded, but it was such a simple option that it hadn’t crossed her mind. Looking at those red cheeks, though, she really wished she’d remembered sooner.

Akko kept her affectionate assault of love up until she could no longer hold in her giggles at the sight of an incredibly flustered Diana. Said woman huffed a sigh of relief when it was finally over and shot her a put-on glare when she’d recovered enough to do so, but accepted Akko’s hug nonetheless as they restarted their cuddling session.

Things hadn’t worked out the way she’d been expecting with her plans, but she was still very much happy with the final result. Triumph was pleasantly warm in her chest, but even warmer still was the affection she could barely hold back as she held the woman she loved most in the world closely.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With this, Dianakko Week 2019 is all done (for me at least). I'm really, really happy so many of you enjoyed this story collection! I had an absolute blast making it and learnt so many new things about writing. Since it was my first published work ever I was suuuper nervous about putting it out, but the reception and kind comments have been absolutely amazing and I love every single one of you so much for saying such kind things and leaving kudos. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. Thank you for reading, for taking enjoyment from my stories and saying such kind things. I can only hope I made your weeks a bit brighter and your smiles a bit wider ^-^
> 
> This kinda sounds like a goodbye, but this isn't the last you've heard of me, oh no. I've got a longer LWA AU/Crossover fic in mind I've been planning for a while (took a break from planning to do this, so can get back to it now), which should be fleshed out enough for me to start writing sooner rather than later. I hope to see you all again whenever that's ready, but for now, thank you so much, again, for reading and being so kind this week :)

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! This is my first published work ever so any and all feedback is appreciated!


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